Nattefrost
Terrorist
7.3
This is Nattefrost. What exactly do you expect it to sound like? This is punky, thrash-oriented black metal the way it’s meant to be played. There is little musical innovation, just a good performance of a genre that is hard to dislike. Nattefrost’s main band, Carpathian Forest, is sometimes described as black ‘n’ roll, and the description is somewhat applicable to Terrorist as well. It’s sort of like Motorhead crossed with black metal, which is a good thing, obviously.
The songs are pretty simple, but that is the point. They revolve around riffs and choruses, and it all has a sense of fun to it, if that makes any sense. Expect straightforward rhythms from the drums, coupled with immensely catchy guitar riffs. The lyrical material is about what one would expect: death, sex, Satan, and black metal itself. Though the members of black metal bands are known for being humorless, I would like to believe that this stuff is a bit tongue in cheek. I mean, it’s easy to tell that the band members are having fun. As is often said of artists like this, if this is intended to be humorous, it’s wonderful, and if it is completely serious, it’s even better. Of course, expect to hear Nattefrost taking a piss, as is the tradition. Although most of the material is straightforward upbeat black metal, I suppose that there is a bit of experimentation, such as the bizarre atonal section on the track “Hellcommander,” or the singing on “Dinsadansdjeveldyrkaar.” However, don’t expect the album to deviate much from the formula that Nattefrost used on his earlier Blood and Vomit. On the whole, the album comes across as a tribute to black metal itself, and a glorious one at that.
Though Nattefrost’s backing band are all probably very good musicians, they are choosing to play simpler material on Terrorist. Nothing about it is technical; it’s just fast-paced punk-style riffing. However, it’s executed with precision throughout. Obviously, Nattefrost himself is the main attraction, and as such, his vocals are mixed a little higher than on a typical black metal release. He has a great voice, and he keeps it varied by experimenting with different tones and styles of delivery. The production is also pretty good. The guitars are totally fuzzed out, as is expected, and the drums are actually recorded really well. Still, the production isn’t perfect. It’s what you expect from black metal. There isn’t much bass to be heard, for instance.
Terrorist is a bit of a lark, and I have to believe that it isn’t completely serious. The lyrical content is so over the top that it’s hard not to laugh. The music is good, though perhaps a purist would find the production values and accessible nature of the songs a bit hard to stomach. Still, I feel it to be a pretty good representation of the genre in general. If you like the idea of black metal party music, go for it.
