Valdur - Divine Cessation

By Steven Leslie. One of the things that made the earliest strains of Death Metal so compelling was the bands’ inherent understanding that for all their boundary pushing extremity, the key to great music was still a groove that sinks

By Steven Leslie.

Cover art by Farron Loathing

One of the things that made the earliest strains of Death Metal so compelling was the bands’ inherent understanding that for all their boundary pushing extremity, the key to great music was still a groove that sinks it’s hooks in and gets listeners moving. As technical skills progress and bands continue to push boundaries, either focusing on displaying their musical proficiency or creating the most atmospherically disturbing take on the genre, that core songwriting element been increasingly neglected.

Undoubtedly Valdur’s newest record Divine Cessation, released in the tail end of 2017, owes a debt to the sound Incantation pioneered. However, unlike many of the teethless rehashes spawned in Incantation’s wake, Valdur has crafted genuinely compelling songs built on infectious dirges and an enveloping sonic darkness that gives the founders a run for their money. While many bands inject one or two killer riffs in a song and suture them together with reckless bouts of chaos, Valdur shows their experience as songwriters by ensuring every section flows together flawlessly, creating songs that will bewitch any fan of atmospheric death metal.

Their astute use of tempo variation is critical to their success, allowing for a diverse and dynamic feel as tracks surge and recede like some unholy army laying siege to a heavily entrenched enemy. The album’s power and range is significantly aided by a stellar drumming performance by Matthew (also of the excellent Sxuperion and Weverin). Instead of simply functioning as the rhythmic backbone of Valdur’s songs, the drums are used to accent and propel the songs forward. Held together by spectacular riff craft and an air-tight interplay between guitar and bass, Matthew is able to play around with enchanting rhythms and charismatic fills, expanding the sound and ensuring that no riff, no matter how long it is sustained, ever gets stale. The crashing cymbals and constantly shifting cavalcades of battery make these catchy, hook-filled hymns all the more compelling.

If there is one area that might hold the record back from being a bona fide classic, it is the vocals. For the most part, Valdur stick to the guttural, echo-drenched sound that is so prolific in the Incantationcore bands of today. While they are competently performed, the warmer, cleaner instrumental production leaves the cavernous vocals sounding rather alien with the rest of the music’s vibe at times. Not necessarily a bad thing, but coupled with a distinct lack of vocal variety, the songs sometimes seem a little more one-dimensional than they actually are. That said, there are a few shining moments when higher register, black metal influenced howls, still drenched in echo and which seem to fit the music better, add that extra touch to take the tracks like “Plague Born of a Dying Star” to the next level. Going forward, continuing pepper their songs with more of this vocal interplay could make them contenders as one of the top modern death metal bands.

Valdur has taken that early groove oriented style and seamlessly integrated it with the atmospheric, murky death metal that is all the rage at the moment. This is an album well worth your time if you enjoy that atmosphere-laced death metal sound. Plus, at a name-your-price download you really can’t lose.