Icy cold and dark, Immortal’s “War Against All” has everything a black metal fan can hope for

Bergen-based black metal legends Immortal are about to release their tenth studio album, “War Against All”, on May 26, via Nuclear Blast. Created solely by vocalist and guitarist Harald “Demonaz” Nævdal and produced by Arve Isdal, the album was recorded at Conclave & Earshot Studio in Bergen, Norway by Herbrand Larsen and Arve Isdal, and mastered by Iver Sandøy at Solslottet.

The album opens with the title-track “War Against All”, a dark, old-school song with gritty guitars and a fast pace. This sets the mood for what is to come: cold and dark winter epic battle songs. “Thunders Of Darkness” follows, and it is as much a battle anthem as the previous track.

“Wargod” brings down the pace a little bit, but still keeps the heaviness and the rawness present in the two previous tracks, especially in Demonaz’s vocal performance; the blast beats that come and go are like a heartbeat that guides the listener though a battlefield aftermath, like Arjuna in the epic post-battle scenes of the Mahabharata. Then, “No Sun” sounds traditional and wintery, icy cold and dark, a track certain to please any black metal admirer.

“Return To Cold” and “Nordlandihr” are two more epic songs with warlike tones, the latter being an instrumental track, both keeping the forward heroic pace of the album. “Immortal” is one of the harshest sounding songs here, chiefly due to Demonaz’s vocals, and “Blashyrkh My Throne” brings a hint of melancholy in its guitar tones, closing the album with magnificence in the purest black metal style of old-school Immortal.

Overall, “War Against All” masterfully captures the essence of Immortal’s music, in the same sense that their previous album “Northern Chaos Gods” did. The production is handled with perfection and manages to keep a raw and real sound, with a heavy wintery vibe to it. Blast beats, gritty distorted guitars with traditional black metal tones and very well delivered harsh vocals make this album certain to please extreme metal fans, especially those who enjoy more traditional and icy cold black metal. Definitely worth a listen.

“War Against All” tracklisting:

1. War Against All
2. Thunders Of Darkness
3. Wargod
4. No Sun
5. Return To Cold
6. Nordlandihr
7. Immortal
8. Blashyrkh My Throne