Danish black metal trio Ligfaerd have been steadily cranking out cacophonous black metal since 2005, delivering a slew of splits, demos and albums, but never before have they been so focused on crafting black metal that is both epic and raw. The album starts with the looming first track “Fra Helvede Frem,” which teases a slow build before faking the listener out and dives straight into a flurry of tremolo picking, pounding drums and growled vocals. It doesn’t let up until the conclusion of the furious “Den Fejlslagne Nedmaning,” which is one of the album’s shortest tracks at 2:54.
The album’s brightest moments are on tracks “Den Stærkeste Hyrde,” which sprawls out over seven minutes, allowing it the necessary room to build in a cold atmosphere and melodies, and “Den Ildrøde Konge,” which sees some of the album’s heaviest and most violent riffs.
“The creation of the music and lyrics went rather fast this time around. You can almost say that the songs wrote themselves,” Ligfaerd tells Decibel. “The recording itself was spread out over a 12-month period in the Goatfarm studio with longtime producer Skygt once again. The inspiration for the cover came from a medieval chalk painting, but with things twisted around. The artist BF.B illustrated the devilish hymns perfectly. We hereby present Den Ildrøde Konge.”
Pre-orders are now available through Vendetta Records.
