Afsky - Sorg

Afsky

Sorg

by Eric Tinmouth-Poulin at 24 May 2018, 5:34 PM

AFSKY is a black metal band based out of Copenhagen, Denmark and is a one-man project of Ole Pedersen Luk. This is their first full-length record (after an EP released in 2015), entitled “Sorg”. It covers 7 tracks at a total of 48:13 minutes and was released on March 9^th 2018, through Vendetta Records.

The opener “Jeg bærer deres lig” has a very dark feel to it with its echoing guitars that creates a dark ominous sphere, followed by blistering slow riffing and double-bass. There are some rapid-fire blast-beats that change the tempo of the song drastically. The vocals are reminiscent of NAGLFAR or early IMMORTAL.

This leads into “Skær”, which is wall of sound with sounds of burning wood, crushing distortion and pounding drums. “Sorte Vand” starts with sounds of nature and distant guitars, and has an old-school KATATONIA atmosphere to it at times; it is violent in its approach, yet very emotional in the vocals, with a strong sense of despair. “Stjernerne slukkes” has a much “sludgier” side to it and reminds me a bit in the early stages of YOB, whereas “Vættekongen” sounds initially like the perfect soundtrack piece for the popular series “Vikings” and then turns into a maelstrom of intensity.

“Glemsomhedens elv” is a beautiful change of pace with some glistening acoustic guitars; it is short but very effective and transitions perfectly to the closer “Oh måneløse nat”, a heart-pounding sinister piece of music, where the listener can easily envision the world burning around him.

Overall, the album conveys feelings of depression, anger and helplessness. It is a strong effort, especially considering everything is composed by 1 person. If you like doomy/depressive black metal, I strongly recommend this one.

Songwriting: 8
Originality: 8
Memorability: 8
Production: 7