Considering this re-release of Homselvareg's debut self-titled/self-released album was described by ATMF as a mix of early Ulver, Enslaved and Windir my expectations were very high before even placing it into my PC. Having listened to it a few times now I honestly can't say if this actually sounds like those elite artists early recordings, but I can definitely see the influence these bands had on Homselvareg.
This five piece Italian band essentially offers up speedy black metal with plenty of melody and lots of interesting acoustic sections. The music generally is of the faster variety although some slower almost doomy parts can be found as well even some progressive like elements. As you can also see from the track listing the songs are broken up into seven separate chapters (like Ulver's Bergtatt), while the remaining three songs are from an early demo made available on this re-release. I'd imagine also like Ulver's early work that perhaps some story is being told through this album, but all of the lyrics are all in Italian. As for Plague's vocals, well they are a fairly normal black metal scream, but it works well enough with the music presented. The production of the album is somewhat raw in character although the overall volume is loud and all the instruments are mostly easily heard.
Not a whole lot to complain about on this release as I think Homselvareg has delivered a pleasing and a unfortunately originally overlooked album. Perhaps this re-release will open some doors and gear us listeners up for the bands sophomore release, which I do hope is on the horizon.
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