DEATH OF GIANTS – Ventesorg
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Behind Death Of Giants is the musician Morten Søbyskogen, who I met more than 10 years ago as the singer of the Norwegian power metal band Frail Grounds. Their only album, The Fields Of Trauma, was released in 2012, after which the band went quiet. However, Morten had real private concerns, as his wife Sandra died of brain cancer at the age of 31 in 2018. Despite treatment, it quickly became clear that she would lose this battle. Morten prepared for the coming grief, for which the Norwegian term "Ventesorg" is used. Fittingly for the sad topic, he combines the styles of gothic, funeral, and melancholic doom metal in his one-man project, the result of which is the very atmospheric album Ventesorg. He was supported by drummer Magnus Nodset as well as some guest musicians who contributed some vocals and two guitar solos. Premonition is a short intro, where keyboards and vocals create the necessary atmosphere to prepare us for the grief. Then follow five tracks that I appreciated from the start. Was It All A Dream starts in typical funeral doom fashion, but then it becomes much more melodic and Morten shows, just like with Frail Grounds, that he is an excellent singer. Dark and melancholic moments alternate in this track which is followed by A Sense Of Urgency, where emotions such as lamentation, anger, and despair can be heard. Now let's come to the single Distance, which was already released in advance. This dark track comes with growls, and the tempo is of course not that fast. A guest musician even plays some cello, which is not that common in metal. The titles of the album often deal with death or missing someone. Morten even dared to cover Only The Good Die Young by Iron Maiden. The song doesn't resemble the original very much, but it really fascinates me as no other track on the album sticks that much in your head. I've played it to many people who don't really like metal and I've only gotten positive feedback. The album ends with the epic Das Ende ist nah, which lasts just over 11 minutes. This piece starts rather quietly until the drums imitate a heartbeat that suddenly stops. Anger rises, but then the album still finds nevertheless a quiet end. The cover artwork is also excellent, it fits perfectly to the textual content. In a dark autumn landscape, you can see an unhappy-looking couple, the grief undoubtedly stands for the impending farewell. Ventesorg is undoubtedly the most personal album that Morten has ever created, which is why he also refers to his music as grief metal. Even if the grief will probably never be completely over, the work on Ventesorg has helped him to make this path easier. Those who like Draconian, Paradise Lost, Ahab, or early Anathema should find something at Death Of Giants. |
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6 songs |
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40:05 minutes |
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***** **** |
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Genre: melancholic gothic doom metal (self-released) |
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