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Taake - Nattestid... review



Reviewer:
9.2

172 users:
8.58
Band: Taake
Album: Nattestid...
Release date: December 1999


01. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid I
02. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid II
03. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid III
04. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid IV
05. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid V
06. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid VI
07. Nattestid Ser Porten Vid VII

This is one absolutely great band which I discovered through Metal Storm, and I'm sincerely grateful for that. I'm also lucky that an acquaintance of mine happened to have "Nattestid Ser Porten Vid" at his home. I immediately asked for it, and was very happy with what I heard.

The first thing that hits you is the production. The first song has a really cool opening riff with a folkish feel to it. But when the other instruments kick in, the sound gets a little bit murky. You feel like there's not enough bass, but that feeling passes after a few seconds of listening and you can get used to it quite fast. There is also no songlist on this album, all of the tracks are marked with the album name and numbers (Nattestid...1,2,3 etc).

In my opinion, Taake is the only band which managed to keep the spirit of True Norwegian Black Metal alive to this day. If you get your hands on this album you will surely notice that it is a special piece of music. All of the songs carry a beautiful melody which is, I must admit, uncharacteristic for Black Metal, but it fits great into Taake's music. The atmosphere in this album is achieved exclusively through amazing guitar work. No keyboards, no special effects, yet, an amazing atmosphere. Another thing that stands out in this album are Hoest's vocals. They are sung with a great deal of emotions, both when he's using screams and clean vocals. Clean vocals are not used very often, but when they come up in songs such as "Nattestid Ser Porten Vid 1" they are folkish chants which give a Viking feel to this album.

The drum work is relatively versatile. It's kept interesting by transitions between blast beats and slower paced rhythms. If you are not a huge fan of blastbeats this album might just turn you into one.
However, if you can't handle the typical kvlt Black Metal production in an album, this album might not be for you. The treble on the guitars is really high and it could make your ears bleed. All of the lyrics are sung in Norwegian, and while listening to this album you can actually picture the foggy mountainsides in your mind. It's a truly unique experience.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 9
Songwriting: 10
Originality: 10
Production: 8

Written by Smurfophagist | 04.05.2009




Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.


Comments

Comments: 9   Visited by: 121 users
24.05.2009 - 22:00
Shadowcross
The Summoner
Great review!
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24.05.2009 - 22:19
Lord_Regnier

Great great great album. A masterpiece, like all Taake albums.
Very melodic in a raw way. And Hoest is one of the greatest BM vocalists.
Lots of variety and tempo changes.

The production is raw, yes, but not as much as old Darkthrone or "Nattens Madrigal".
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"Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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25.05.2009 - 00:00
Smurfophagist

Thanks for the positive feedback
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Having a signature is an absolute must.
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26.05.2009 - 04:29
Ag Fox
Angel No More
Thanks for reviewing this. It made curious to go on myspace and now I'm convinced i need to check out their albums properly [=
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loves 小巫
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26.05.2009 - 04:44
Lord_Regnier

Taake is great. It's very reminiscent of the old Norwegian bands like Darkthrone and Satyricon but the technical and musicianship level is higher. It's BM on a very high level, imo.
It's excellent on every aspect, it doesn't have any glaring weakness. Nothing is perfect but Taake is very close to perfection, as long as you enjoy raw BM, of course.

Hoest is a bit crazy in life but he's a musical genius.
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"Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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24.09.2009 - 17:54
Slayer666

Wow, after this review and Regnier gloryfing the album, I have to check it out!!
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25.09.2009 - 02:06
Lord_Regnier

Don't forget there's a matter of tastes, so not everyone would praise the album as much as I do.
But if you like raw BM, you should like it.
I also think it's not an album you'll fall in love with at first listen but it grows on you.
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"Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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26.11.2009 - 10:53
Rating: 10
pdepmcp

A true masterpiece and a very good review to point it out.
This is the best Taake album to date and deserve a check by all BM fans.
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22.11.2012 - 22:15
Rating: 7
CobiWan1993
Secundum Filium
My favorite album in all of black metal. \m/
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Ordinary men hate solitude. But the Master makes use of it, embracing his aloneness, realizing he is one with the whole universe (Lao Tzu).
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