Nartvind is not quite the band that is firing away releases at Drowning The Light-speed, but when they do have something new for you, you can be sure it was worth the wait. The band was started all the way back in 2001 and delivered what could be regarded as a classic Belgian Black Metal demo in 2003 (‘Until Their Ruin’, also released on vinyl by Painkiller Records), yet it took the Nartvind-duo until 2010 to come up with their debut full-length, ‘Ruinous’, that was released by the cult Finnish Grievantee Productions label.
Besides the ‘Mist’ 7” EP that was also released in 2010 it took the band another decade to release something new, one track on the Amor Fati-released split 7” EP with Saatkrähe. But it were those years since the 2020’s the band finally seemed to be gaining some well-deserved recognition. Before the vinyl version of that “classic” demo was almost given away for free from various distros and it was a regularly seen item on various private trade and sale lists. Yet, with the vinyl version of ‘Ruinous’ finally appeared in 2020 (Gramschap/Deviant Records) it was really with the unleashing of the long awaited second full-length album through Medieval Prophecy Records that things really seemed to fall in place.
Musically, however, ‘Breath Of Night’ is not really offering so much difference when compared to the formula used on the previously released recordings. The band’s core is still very much based on that special tipping point between such BlazeBirth Hall bands like Forest and Raven Dark and the repetitive, bareboned sound of Ildjarn. Also the grittiness of some of those grainy sounding French bands from the country’s golden era is definitely to be discerned within the borders of Nartvind’s musical spectrum. A raw and subdued production is really supplying the finishing touch for ‘Breath Of Night’s cold and barren sound. The almost flat and one-dimensional nature of the music is given wings by the flawless detailing and execution of the concept. The rare moments when the band deploys an acoustic interlude, for instance, give the album an unprecedented depth and expose the beauty of the pure.
Without shortchanging the earlier recordings, on ‘Breath Of Night’, Nartvind seem for the first time to have really been able to cast all the elements of their musical vision in the right balance, with the result that this latest album unquestionably showcases the band in its full glory.
Medieval Prophecy Records
- Country: Belgium
- Style: Black Metal
- Links: Youtube
