This is the first chapter in
Bathory's saga about the viking shores. And I must say right away that they have succeeded in capturing the spirit of "True Viking Metal", as it was supposed to be done in my ears!
The short intro leads us into the titletrack. The repeating bass riff becomes a focus point in an interesting song, where a lot of things are happening. From the start of the album the medieval influences are clear, with the use of instruments like horn, flute, etc. The fundament itself is a rather simple riff and heavy wardrums, but the overall sound has a bombastic touch due to the huge choir. This is a worthy titletrack because it's both the best song on the album and representative for the record as a whole.
"Vinterblot" is a pretty slow track with an almost mantra like feeling due to the chanting choir. Very bombastic and heavy at the same time. There are many details to be uncovered when you listen closely, and the guitarwork is also of high quality, which is in fact the case on the whole album!
"Dragon's Breath" starts of course, with the roar of a dragon, a good example of the use of "realistic" sounds in many songs. It's a slow song with a nice atmosphere, but I must say I'm not totally satisfied with Quorthon's vocal performance as it seems a little thin and streched to me.
"Ring Of Gold" is the ballad of the album, and a very emotional one too! To me, it's one of the highlights. It starts off with some beautiful acoustic guitar, then the vocals sets in, and in this song I find Quorthon to fulfill the singing task very good! The melody in this song is very beautiful, as are the lyrics about a viking leaving home and saying goodbye to his loved one. It has a very folk oriented touch and the sound of birds in the background completes the magic!
"Foreverdark Woods" starts off with some nice real life sounds like a rider galloping, birds in the background, and the vision of being in a wood is complete. The union between guitar and choir creates a cool effect. Once again my complaint is about the vocal, but it's something I can live with, as it's not catastrophical, I could just have wished for something more interesting. Somehow it seems too flat and one dimensional. Once again this mid-tempo piece is like a hymn, and has very clear folk elements and use of medieval instruments.
"Broken Sword" give us the heaviest tune on the album, a raging blast with double drumbeats and roaring guitars, though the melody shines through it all. A very intense song! Towards the end it slows down and ends with an acoustic part with the effect of waves.
"Great Hall Awaits A Fallen Brother" begins with a raw and roaring riff. The melody in this one is pretty catchy, even though the song itself is pretty technical. After the brutal start, it kind of changes when the vocals sets in with a very melodic vocal line, and more and more elements are woven together, making this 8:16 minutes song interesting from start to end. Around the middle is a short rythmic guitarpart, another feature to save the song from getting boring.
"Mother North Father Thunder" is a song, which can be compared to
"Vinterblot" in the sense that it has this chanting, mantra like feeling to it. The sound is very powerful and huge, like a landscape of many instruments, sounds and voices. The togetherness of guitar and choir is stunning and the guitar work is once again of very high quality!
The album is closed by the instrumental part
"Heimfard", consisting most of natural soundeffects like birds, water and wind. According to Qourthon this is not the outtro to
"Nordland pt. 1" but the intro to next chapter,
"Nordland pt. 2".
My only complaint with this release is that I find Quorthon's vocals a little too thin, and this have always been my "problem" with Bathory! Real strong music but rather weak vocals. However in some tracks like
"Ring Of Gold" he surprises me and does indeed a good job! But to me he's always been a better songwriter and instrumentalist than singer.
"Nordland pt. 1" is the real definition of the expression Viking Metal! It's majestic, epic, and the whole album has this hymn like feeling!
I also love the production, especially the guitar and bass sound, which is very raw, and overall the album leaves an unpolished impression, while the sound is still transparent enough to make every instrument/effect stand out clear. The way the music is arranged is nothing short of amazing, it's like a complete landscape with so many details, it never gets boring, even after many, many spins in your stereo!
Another cool thing is the many different effects like the sound of sword fighting, a galloping horse, wind blowing, waves, birds and numerous other gimmicks, that in my eyes make the overall impression a lot more detailed and interesting. At the same time it adds to the feeling that this is an ongoing story being told.
On the negative side, I must say that even though the choirs is a strong and well arranged element on this album, ironically it's also the weak one. No doubt it fit the songs perfectly but it seems a little too much as it plays a central role in all songs without exception! A little variation could be wished for.
Nevertheless this album is amazing and I can imagine most fans of epic Metal will find something to cherish on it!
Written by
Nina Sunday, July 27, 2003
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