Year: 2021
Total Time: 46.00
Label: Season of Mist

“Vreid” in Norwegian language means rage, and the Norwegians from Sogndal continue with their Viking Black’n’Roll style, to release “aggressive” records like “Wild North West”!

“Wild North West” is the ninth full length album of the band, being a concept work. As the band states, it is like a movie where in eight chapters (one for each song) the listener will be taken on a journey deep in the mountains, in a dark place where the boundaries between reality and fantasy are fading, where death is only one step behind! Also, the front cover of this album is surely impressive!

 The album starts impressively with “Wild North West” and “Wolves at Sea” which are by far the two best tracks in here! However, the stormy «Shadows of Aurora» or even the “Spike of God” are of the same high levels! Of course, these things have been played many times before by other major bands of the same genre as old ESLAVED, EINHERJER, THYRFING to name a few. The guitars are as they should be, hard and sharp, almost always in the Viking style (with quite pure  Black Metal parts). There are also some parts that the guitars are undistorted for more atmosphere. A positive thing is the use of keys that really enrich the sound, giving an epic tone, and the distorded vocals of Stur (singer and guitarist since the beginning of the band), in most songs. Unfortunately, in the song “Dazed and Reduced” the vocals become clean and the sound goes to the progressive rock style, looking at the last albums of ENSLAVED….

 Summing up, “Wild North West” is an descend album especially in its harsh and epic parts. At the points that the sound of the band goes differently towards more atmospheric styles, more rock, more progressive realms, I think that the quality of the album falls, because the band loses its style and orientation. In any case, the album deserves your attention, either you are a fan of this genre or not.

Rating: 7/10
Editor: Dimitris Argyrakis
Related Link: VREID – Facebook Page