Album Review: Motljus – För evigt for #MetalChronicles

Band: Motljus
Title: För evigt
Label: Independent
Release date:  March  21st,  2024
Country: Sweden
Format reviewed: High-Quality Digital Recording 

Album Review: Motljus – För evigt by Sílvia for #MetalChronicles

This album is one year old and I still don’t know how I didn’t find the way to it before. But hey, never too late, so here I am writing some words about “För evigt”, the second album released by Motljus only two months after their namesake debut.

The more I listen to “För evigt” (“Forever” in Swedish), the more I realize how I need this kind of music in my life. The four tracks that shape this album make my soul wander over vast and dark landscapes, and no matter how far I go, I know I belong there and that’s my comfort place. Atmospheric and post-Black Metal makes me shiver, brings me comfort through darkness, hard to explain but it soothes my inner turmoils and it can also silence my demons. The first time I listened to this album I knew I needed to write something about it. And yes, I NEEDED IT, sometimes the feeling is so intense, so overwhelming… and I can’t calm down until I’ve turned my emotions into words.

Motljus is a one man band, Arvid Lundén plays ALL the instruments and does the vocals. I’m amazed that only one person is responsible for the emotional rampage that leaves me upside down. Let me try to explain what these 4 songs make me feel…  

“Kallt regn” (“Cold rain”) is the first track and it’s a raw and overwhelming immersion in the blackest of a black abyss. It’s a brutal wall of sound that wraps me completely, not a single flash of light can be seen here. The icy and sharp guitar sound can freeze the blood in my veins, in contrast with the deep resonance of the bass, which seems to be the blistering flame that will be devouring my entrails for more than 9 minutes. I know, it’s a contradiction but this is how I feel it. Vocals are pure agony and despair, and those insane screams tear my heart in hundreds of tiny shreds. Drums play a vast repertoire of blast beats and mid tempos with brutal precision, putting emphasis on the bass pedal, specially the first two minutes of the song, it’s a total devastation. I feel the cold, the emptiness, the anguish… even if I don’t understand the lyrics. No need. 

“Blå ögon” (“Blue eyes”) is a fantastic journey. Starting with a bit of an optimistic atmosphere, but entering some darker realms after a while, this track builds an oppressive fort around me as soon as the screams begin. I feel comfy cradled by blast beats and tremolo picking, and the distorted and raw guitar keeps me on guard while I allow my ears to enjoy the bass and its alluring resonance.

“Avsked” (“Farewell”) is the longest track, it’s a pure and relentless inner devastation. Starting in a noisy way with the sound of a heavily distorted guitar, while there’s a tremolo playing in the background, and the deep texture of the bass joining a bit later. All this creates a perfect intro for this 12 minute opus that is pure emotion unleashed. The agonic Black Metal shrieks are almost buried under the music, and the contrast between desperation and light (this one given by the tremolo riffs) gives birth to something beautiful. Even if it’s painful, even if it provokes the sinking of the soul… it’s damn beautiful. And I love when drums are not running fast, I don’t have the urge to reach anywhere ‘cause I could stay in this place forever. The last minutes are more frantic, hypnotic, finally releasing all the restrained pain and suffering. 

And the closing theme, “Svart sot” (“Black soot”) starts building a soft and comfy atmosphere, those guitar notes sound emotional, as if depicting a surreal landscape. The bass sounds “big”, conferring warmth and peace to the song… And after a while, two brutal shrieks turn it all into something extremely painful. Drums are something spectacular from now on. I’m falling into a pitch black hole and I can’t feel, only dive in the agonic turmoil.

I love, definitely LOVE when Black Metal makes me feel devastated like this album does. “För evigt” is cathartic, I feel a stir of emotions boiling inside me, and after being completely annihilated by the music, I am alive again. 9,5/10  by  Sílvia

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