#Hädangången Likfärd for #MetalChronicles

Band: Hädangången
Title: Likfärd
Label: Independent
Release date:  06 June 2023
Country: Sweden
Format reviewed: High-Quality Digital Recording 

One name: Vindsval. He is the only person in Hädangången, and in case his name sounds familiar to you, it’s because he’s the founder of the Swedish Black Metal band Mara (and the first years, it was a one-man band also). I enjoyed a lot their latest album, “Loka Mær”, and how could I resist to review this work by Vindsval too? It was released in June last year, and now I have the chance to say my words about it in this section of the zine, Metal Chronicles.

The main feeling present in this album is an intense cold running through your bones. It can be due to the icy guitar tone, with plenty of tremolo riffs, with the two guitars often playing like a very good tandem. Drums can be so overwhelming that I feel crushed under the weight of such an amount of blasts. And vocals, wow… screaming like a desperate and furious soul, who wanders across frozen and desolate plains, all covered by snow, an unbearable biting cold wind making me numb…

Let’s talk about each track. Starting with “Sorgens borg” (“Castle of Sorrow”), which is a dark and very atmospheric entrance to “Likfärd”. Guitars seem to play almost physical music, I can feel the main riff and the lower notes by the bass waving in front of me, not only noticing the pulse of the notes. As if I could touch them. It’s strong in intensity, and the vocals scream in anguish and desperation. 

Second track, “Själslig frid” (“Peace of mind”) has a very energetic start. Cymbals are smashed non-stop, and the bass pedal is steaming at times. The sound is raw and bleak, there’s no light around while I’m listening to this. In fact, I feel like I’m in the middle of a Nordic forest at night because the icy cold guitars and the sound of the owl bring me there. In the middle of this track, there’s a break, drums disappear for a while and guitars play a fantastic and sharp passage, playing some piercing tremolo, until drums join at a slow pace while a storm is approaching. The vocals, tore and full of anguish, wake me up from the slumber. I reach the end of this song with a deep sense of grief.

“Hägring” (“Mirage”) is the calm that follows the storms, both internal and physical, and it’s the connection with nature you were looking for. A few notes are played by a melodica (I think), repeating the same melody again and again, while you can listen to a bird I don’t know, also a crow, an owl… a soft guitar playing a few notes… The storm and rain are also here but in a “quiet mode”, this is a beautiful interlude and I can feel the bond with the forest, fauna, natural elements… It’s soothing indeed. And to finish, the storm is coming again…

“Kamp mot allt” (“Fight against everything”) comes next and I don’t understand the lyrics in Swedish, but I have the impression that it is some kind of internal rebellion, vocals are pure anguish, music marks a painful slow pace at first until total fury is unleashed… Damn, this is like a rollercoaster of emotions, and I love it!

The last track, “I Nordens dvala” (“In the Nordic slumber”) leads me to the end of this short (but intense) journey. Drums are fast and guitars play their familiar ice-cold tremolo riffs, while vocals are fierce and full of anguish. The cold wind and the owl and the crows are the connection with the natural environment, and when the song comes to an end it’s like I finally found some peace. I don’t know how long it will last, but it feels good…

I need to mention the cover art, which speaks with no words about the elements that come to my head while listening to this EP: a cold Scandinavian forest with snow and crows flying over there, and the always present owl… It represents it so well. I also like a lot the font of the letters used in the band’s logo.

Sometimes an album is more than music. I personally like it a lot more when it speaks to me about emotions and I can connect with that music and, in some way, make it a part of me. This is seriously good stuff, and I’m really eager to listen to Vindsval’s new album when it’s released. I give this one. 9/10   Sílvia

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9/10 Epic Storm
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