When it comes to the enjoyment of music, it goes without saying that the most important of the five traditional human senses is hearing (well, duh). However, as anyone who has witnessed their infamous stage shows up close and personally can attest, smell can be just as important a sensory device with Swedish Black Metallers, Watain.
Along with the standard rock and roll aromas of dry ice, pyros, sweat and smoke, the less than pleasant odour of animal skulls and carcasses has often been known to hang heavily in the air along with the thick, coppery smell of pigs blood. You might not be able to remember the exact set-list a day or two later, but you certainly won’t forget how long it took to get the smell out of your clothes and hair.
As well as the rancid animal skulls and unpleasant liquid red dousings to which they have been known to treat their audiences, Watain’s shows are also steeped in ritual symbolism, the band even being known to include the setting sun as part of their act while playing outdoor festivals. Close your eyes while listening to the band’s sixth full length outing, Trident Wolf Eclipse (Century Media), and you’ll be able to experience all of these things in the comfort of your own darkened room, along with the added bonus aroma of fire and brimstone, but without having to hold your nose.
Leadoff single ‘Nuclear Alchemy’ kicks things off with absolutely zero fucking about, and literally sounds like all Hell has broken loose. Played at a blistering pace, and only ever slowing down to reveal a darker side full of dusky lead riffs and melodies (and some nice wah-wah pedal work), ‘Sacred Damnation’ follows hot on its heels, while the mid-paced but grandiose ‘Teufelsreich’ would be the perfect accompaniment for the moonlit forest blood ritual of your choice.
Brimming with speed and Satanic fury as the title suggests, ‘Furor Diabolicus’ continues to tear the listener a new ear hole with appropriate lines like “wild and fierce, the storm is coming!”, while ‘A Throne Below’ features rumbling drums which sound like they have risen from beneath the earth itself. If you wanted to give your neck a well-earned rest, then ‘Ultra (Pandemoniac)’ is probably not the best song to listen to. A fast and frantic opening gives way to a punishing off-kilter rhythm which in turn explodes into a Slayer guitar solo being played over a particularly nasty Thrash riff, and ends with some suitably maniacal laughter. ‘Towards The Sanctuary’ and ‘The Fire Of Power’ round off the record in rousing style, the two songs sitting side by side as two of the strongest on offer, each proudly showing off the band’s many strengths.
The album’s production suits the music perfectly, as its dynamics shift without warning from one moment to another. One minute, you’re concentrating on one of many memorable lead guitar melodies, but the next, you find yourself being unceremoniously stabbed in the face by an abrupt blast of volume, as the drums or vocals suddenly take centre-stage.
Unlike 2013’s more diverse, The Wild Hunt (Century Media), Trident Wolf Eclipse (the album’s title incorporating the three recurring symbols used by the band) is a much more stripped back, straight-forward affair with no quiet ‘They Rode On’ style explorations or clean singing. Just thirty-five minutes of Swedish Black Metal hatred, and a superb way to begin 2018.
8.5/10
GARY ALCOCK