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Reviews
Bornholm: March for glory and revenge
04/03/10 || Global Domination
It could have been really bad. Whew! No amount of suckage manages to surprise me when it comes to these “gems” we get sent by the record labels out there. I swear, Lordi K-gay, our lord and savior, must have naked pictures of quite a few of these label executives, as they seemingly persist in sending us stuff despite the constant new-asshole-tearing our illustrious staff of misanthropic malcontents make these unsuspecting bands suffer.
Alas, that’s luckily not the case for this Hungarian black metal outfit that I picked, although I must admit I was expecting a blizzard of diarrhea when I saw them advertised as a Pagan/Viking metal extravaganza on the line-up of assorted bands we got to pick from on that occasion. I was also fucken glad to notice upon checking their background history that they’re not related in any way to their countrymen and cocksuckers extraordinaire Ektomorf; nor is that other célèbre Hungarian idiot and band whore Attila from Mayhem singing in this album. Good start!
In fact, I sort of like this stuff. It isn’t terribly new, as there isn’t much room for innovation in my opinion when it comes to mixing black metal with the Viking influences; it’s all been done before at this point. Bornholm treads on familiar paths on “March for Glory and Revenge”, but I must say they go about it with some energy, competence and flashes of originality. There is much more black metal in the mix, played well, with plenty of aggression and epic pacing, yet there is enough room in each track for the Viking-themed melodies to flourish. I’m pretty sure there was no Vikings whatsoever anywhere near Hungary, but at this point, I don’t think anyone gives a flying fuck about where Vikings came from or where their voyages took them, only that they’re metal. Plastic swords and horned helmets for everyone, and let them have it!
Back to the matter at hand, I’ll say the guitars have a nice buzz-saw touch of violence about them, and these guys know how to play some interesting riffs indeed, plus throwing in some fitting acoustic interludes here and there that enhance the epic feel of the songs. The bass is typically buried on the mix, while the drumming is also typically full of powerful blasting and not much more. The vocals are of the snarling kind, properly raw and potent, very good work by this Thorgor guy! He gets bonus points too for using some decent clean vocal choruses on the momentous segments that work quite well.
The songs are mostly good, even the two instrumentals, although those could have been worked into the songs they precede instead for a stronger effect. Some other tracks here are even excellent quality examples of this type of metal done in the best way possible, like “Where the Light Was Born” and “Light Burst into Flames on the Horns of Baphomet”. These are two great fucken songs indeed! These are the type of tunes that make me want to unsheathe my machete and go on a rape-the-crocodiles raiding expedition on the Everglades swamps, for lack of a Nordic environment on which to unsheathe my sword and set out to sea on the dragon longboats. Or whatever. Epic stuff, I tell you!
All in all, “March for Glory and Revenge” is a promising effort. These guys are on the right track, and with a bit more work and attention to detail, next time around they might manage to write something truly mind-blowing. They have the songwriting know-how almost figured out; all they need to do is keep it consistent, trim the instrumental stuff a bit and add more variety overall, starting with the drumming. I’ll be looking forward to their next one. Bornholm has potential to become a very good band in this genre if they manage to improve on this record. Good work, fuckers! Now I’ll be off to do the Baphomet-Viking rape on some unsuspecting farm animal, cheers!
- Information
- Released: 2009
- Label: Vic Records
- Website: www.bornholm.hu
- Band
- Thorgor: vocals
- Astaroth: guitars
- Vozargh: guitars
- Hjules: bass
- D: drums
- Tracklist
- 01. Intro – Reconquering the Carpathians
- 02. The Call of the Heathen Horns
- 03. From the Blackness of Aeons
- 04. Mournful Hymns
- 05. Where the Light Was Born (Thule Ultima A Sole Nomen Habens)
- 06. Light Burst into Flames on the Horns of Baphomet
- 07. Towering Clouds over the Fields of Carnuntum
- 08. Deconsecrating the Spear of Destiny
- 09. Dreams of Ages