After a duo of EPs, sole member Nebel is now ready to unleash the full-length debut of Triumphal Vengeance upon us. Once again brought by Death Revelations, it contains slightly over half an hour of newly composed tracks.
After a short organ intro ‘What Fire Reveals’ presents the latest material in a rather raw sounding fashion, with pulsating pace and subtle melodic riffing. The music is still very much based on the structures of 90’s Norwegian Black Metal set by the likes of Darkthrone, Gorgoroth, Immortal and Satyricon. But certainly, the atmosphere is more epic and Pagan, borrowing from the sound of for instance Isengard and Borknagar. This manifests both in the underlying tone of the riffs, clean strumming and occasional slower passages, but perhaps more evidently in the background clean chanting. As a whole, ‘Spears of Conquest’ is a rather uptempo affair however, more so than the preceding ‘Crossing the Rubicon’.
The largest evolution in the band is the more seamless integration of the elements. Take for instance ‘Cold Blazing Steel’, where the cold and blazing riffs (indeed an apt title) are accompanied by subtly woven background chants and mesmerizing clean strumming. While in particular ‘Crossing the Rubicon’ at times ventured quite far into Heavy Metal territories with Isengard-esque clean singing, ‘Spears of Conquest’ seems more balanced and focused. Perhaps a little less dynamically shifting, it gives the album a more uniform character. And with it, it places more emphasis on where the band truly excels: the excellent riffs, which shine within the raw guitar sound.
By keeping the play time to just about half an hour, the album retains its intensity (and with it, my attention span). So it’s safe to conclude that Triumphal Vengeance manages to continue to improve on their formula with ‘Spears of Conquest’. The more focused approach of the raw-sounding riffs, the menacing drums and sophisticated touch of well-integrated Pagan elements makes the band sound more convincing than ever before.
