Satanic Warmaster
Aamongandr
Werewolf Records
Released: 12/17/22
Version Reviewed: 12″ LP, Red Transparent, Limited Edition of 1000 Copies
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A1 – Bafomet
A2 – Duke’s Ride (…Of the Spectral Hooves)
A3 – Berserk Death
B1 – The Eye of Satan
B2 – Darkness…Triumphator
B3 – Barbas X Aamon
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Satanic Warmaster is arguably one of the most well-known names in the Finnish black metal scene. Established in 1998, and the first strike coming in the form of the Bloody Ritual demo in 2000. Since then, five full-lengths, four EPs, twelve splits, and multiple demos and live albums have followed in its wake.
Without a doubt, controversy is something that has followed both Werwolf and Satanic Warmaster. If you’re looking for reviews on people and not music then perhaps you’re better suited for something like Lambgoat or Blabbermouth, where they don’t review black metal at all.
Aamongandr marks the sixth proper full-length in the Satanic Warmaster canon. Appearing just over two decades after the release of the debut of Strength & Honour, Aamongandr is an evolutionary leap from the early roots of Satanic Warmaster that sees Werwolf writing with a full lineup of complimentary musicians at his side, a similar approach used in 2014’s Fimbulwinter. In the two decades of Satanic Warmaster, we have witnessed the project evolve from crass three and four chord progression riffcraft, fumbling blastbeats and d-beats, amateur mixing and production and general audio barbarism to epic windswept songwriting and complete developed and complex structuring.
Aamongandr opens with its lead single ‘Bafomet,’ a track that was given its own standalone advanced release. There is no introductory phrase or buildup, it opens on pure blasting and a shifting framework chordal phrasing in conjunction with tremolo single-note melody. Downbeats emphasize the primary riff hook of the track to lead in Werwolf’s vocals to begin the song proper. Two minutes into the song, one can hear the huge build up and release in melodic emphasis applied to the chorus to resolve the first verse, creating a sensation of ‘epicness’ within the music. Following the second proper verse is an extended bridge which resolves into the hook of the primary riff and back into the next verse, which flows back into the chorus to end the track.
‘Duke’s Ride (…Of the Spectral Hooves)’ is yet another instance of melodic ‘epicness’, with the grandiose charging melodic power setting upon the listener immediately, no introductory phrasing or build-up. The intro riff features a wondrous swaying melodic phrase atop a storming blastbeat that does create the sensation of ‘spectral hooves,’ or one, thematically, charging into battle. Approaching the third verse, the track breaks narrative, first by executing a beautiful sequence of single-note tremolo melody accented by keyboard swells before greatly slowing the tempo and switching into a stage of clean guitars and the sound of a ghostly steed. Entering the third verse proper are sweeping fifth chords sequences accompanying epic keyboard melodies and choir swells. The sweeping transition resolves and returns to the original narrative at the fifth verse, bringing back the original sensation of storming ‘spectral hooves’ to eventually terminate the track. Masterfully composed.
‘Berserk Death’ is a more straightforward track, driven by a d-beat rhythm and open-chord riffing accented by keyboard strings within the verse structures. The bridge that separates the second and third verses harkens back to the days of Carelian Satanist Madness.
Side B opens with ‘The Eye of Satan,’ which begins on a slower pace and grinding tremolo chords which evolve into a plethora of melodic riffcraft, showcasing an evolutionary trait not yet seen in the Satanic Warmaster canon. The song constantly stays in rhythmic motion and morph, with accents and melodic overtones constantly emerging and resolving.
‘Darkness…Triumphator’ begins at a pace similar to ‘The Eye of Satan,’ and features an early primary riff that switches between open and closed note chords, similar to the approach used on ‘The Vampiric Tyrant’ from Carelian Satanist Madness. The primary riff drives the main vocal narrative for the majority of the song.
The album closes on the longest track of Aamongandr, the staggering and hypnotic ‘Barbas X Aamon,’ clocking in nearly eight minutes in length, and with a very vintage Burzum early leading phrase, replete with a primary riff of bleeding arpeggios and keyboard tones reminiscent of Filosofem. A secondary phrase of funerary atmosphere enters to drive the verses forward before circling back to primary intro phrase and repeating the pattern throughout the track until resolution.
Comparing Aamongandr to prior Satanic Warmaster releases shows a noticeable evolution from both 2014’s Fimbulwinter and, certainly, 2010’s Nachzehrer. Where Nachzehrer bore an extreme striking resemblance to the stripped-down chord-based hammer-to-skull style approach of the debut, Strength & Honour, more than anything, Aamongandr sticks much closer to Fimbulwinter in terms of musically genetic comparison. However, even Aamongandr is a lengthy step away from Fimbulwinter on numerous accords. The composition, production, mixing, and overall songwriting is an evolutionary step forward on Aamongandr when compared to Fimbulwinter, which itself was an evolutionary step forward against Nachzehrer. Comparing tracks such as ‘Bafomet’ and ‘Duke’s Ride (…Of the Spectral Hooves)’ against songs from Fimbulwinter such as ‘Funeral Wolves’ and ‘Dragon’s Egg,’ one hears the actualization of musical ideas simply not just being grasped for – as the case in Fimbulwinter – but seized and now fully realized.
While at times sweeping, epic, and strangely uplifting, Aamongandr still bears the bloody markings of classic Satanic Warmaster; cold, grim, and its core, purely dire black metal.
Also, that amazing album cover was done by the late Ken Kelly, who passed away in June of 2022.
Label: Werewolf Records
Band: Satanic Warmaster
-AJK
apanthropy 
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