After a nearly seven-year break, Norwegian black metal stalwarts
Kampfar return with the epic
Kvass, an album that mixes the basic tropes of contemporary Scandinavian death metal with an approach that in this context sounds almost classicist by metal standards. Echoes of '70s-vintage metal and the harder side of progressive rock abound on
Kvass, from the
Black Sabbath lumber of the rhythm section (consistently playing at about half the tempo the average black metal act would attempt) to touches like the semi-classical piano interludes on "Ravenheart" and the uniformly lengthy song structures giving plenty of room for expressive multiple-guitar riff showcases of the style that
Hawkwind and
the Groundhogs perfected. Those whose aesthetic sense of Norwegian death metal leads them to judge a band's quality solely on the thrash of their drummer and how much the singer sounds like the Cookie Monster might discount
Kvass, but overall, this is both a welcome return to form and a rare example of how Scandinavian metal bands can successfully reacquaint themselves with their roots. ~ Stewart Mason