Vananidr – Beneath the Mold
Release Date: 28th October 2022
Label: Black Lion Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Black Metal
FFO: Hydra, Dissection, Vvilderness.
Review By: The Wayfaerer
Norway may be considered the home for black metal, but right next door is Sweden, who launched one of the earliest and most influential black metal acts ever in Bathory. Hailing from the same hometown as Quorthon himself, Vananidr are a relatively new black metal act. Formed in 2018 out of the remains of the bands Hydra and Synodus Horrenda, Vananidr aspires to be the best of both. Headed up by multi-instrumentalist Anders Eriksson on guitars, bass, and vocals; ex-Amon Amarth drummer Fredrik Andersson, and bassist Per Lindström, it’s safe to say that Vananidr has a very respectable line-up. With all their experiences in music combined, Vananidr has graced us with their fourth full-length album ready to freeze us all to the bone, Beneath the Mold.
Dominion kicks the album off with a groovy build-up that explodes into a cacophony of melodic riffs and thundering drums. Andersson’s experience with Amon Amarth really shines through, as his drumming mixes between a flurry of blast beats and a more basic groove beat that carries the record over numerous peaks and valleys. Awake opens eerily into a triumphant charge led by Eriksson’s chugging riffs that soar into the sky along with his cold-as-ice shriek. The Watcher is my personal favorite on the album, with its slow melodic build-up that evokes a feeling of melancholy and solemn contemplation, that is if you enjoy your brooding sessions with a banshee’s wail and melodic guitar leads. The title track, Beneath The Mold, comes at you hard with blast beats and those fast-paced riffs that threaten to rip you out of your seat. The reverb on Eriksson’s voice feels like it’s being carried across a frozen wind in the dead of night, and it’s honestly quite amazing. Right when you think it’s done, it fades into a calm piano piece with the sound of circling crows overhead, to evoke a macabre scene that the listener will have to envision how horrible it is. After that short interlude, the riffs and blast beats return in force, with Eriksson launching into a solo that carries the song out to its end. Probably the best song on the album by far. Dressed in Pain seems to evoke feelings of tragedy, with Eriksson’s riffs sounding like a somber violin playing out a funeral dirge. Sea of Lies ends off the album much like how it began, with thunderous blast beats and those melodic, howling riffs that accompany Eriksson’s shrieks.
There were many times I wanted to like this album. Many times, I tried to fully immerse myself into the bleak imagery of wandering through the fog, lost in a cold winter day, but those moments were few and far between. The Watcher and Beneath the Mold were the only two songs that really stood on their own, with everything else blending together into an unidentifiable mush, with the blast beats, the soaring melodic riffs, and the structure that makes all four of them sound eerily the same. And while the album is very melodic, I didn’t feel nearly the impact that say Vvilderness’ Devour the Sun album had, where it wrapped around my soul and nearly brought me to tears. Erkisson’s shrill voice, gets the job done well, but there’s not much to single him out as unique or identifiable. It’s just another black metal shriek that I’ve heard a thousand times. But perhaps my biggest problem is the bloat. Not a single song is shorter than six minutes, with the title track being over ten. With only two songs out of six standing out, this album can be a chore to get through. Is it the worse thing ever? No. The mixing is fine, the musicianship is great, but two out of six songs being worthwhile just doesn’t cut it for me. Maybe if you’re a hardcore black metal fan, you’ll see the appeal and call me a moron, but Beneath The Mold lies only mediocrity for me. 
(3 / 5)
