Review of Vinterriket - ...und die Nacht kam Schweren Schrittes (Reissue)

I've subjected myself to enough ambient music to understand that one must approach the genre in a different manner than more accessible forms of music. We often hear that we have to "take this stuff in." Somehow I picture a dark room, incense (or other, more illegal things) and a purple rug. I don't really buy into this theory. The best music is the kind that grabs you immediately and creates the mood for you rather than the other way around. Vinterriket's Und Die Nacht Kam Schweren Schrittes does a decent job creating the mood, but doesn't always take you in the most desirable directions.

I don't often listen to more Scandinavian folk-influenced ambient music, but this ranks as one of my better experiences with the sound. It's neither overly simplistic nor needlessly complex. The man behind the name Vinterriket, Christoph Ziegler, has a strong understanding of arrangement, a fact made clear through the sheer diversity of these eight tracks. I am reminded of Burzum's ambient albums but I find this to sound more accomplished. At least half of the tracks run too long, but I can't say that Vinterriket doesn't switch pace and add layers often enough to keep things relatively interesting. More understated than most ambient music, nothing on Und Die Nacht Kam Schweren Schrittes is bombastic or light.

If there truly are people who not only collect but frequently listen to ambient music, Vinterriket and Und Die Nacht Kam Schweren Schrittes comes recommended. It is difficult for me to see ambient music as nothing more than misplaced soundtrack fodder, a handicap I know is my own personal shortcoming. It would be wrong to judge this album in the same way that I would judge a Machine Head or Solitude Aeturnus release, because Mr. Ziegler does not apply the same values to his music as artists making more tangible material. If the arrangements were made more compact and a few layers weren't completely milked, the songwriting would get a much better score, but as it stands this is an above average ambient release that manages to create compelling and challenging moods more often than not.

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Vinterriket

...und die Nacht kam Schweren Schrittes (Reissue)

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