V:28 — SoulSaviour (review)

V:28 — SoulSaviour album cover Album · 2005 · Melodic Black Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
UMUR
"SoulSaviour" is the 2nd full-length studio album by Norwegian black metal act V:28. The album was released through Vendlus Records in May 2005.

V:28 is a pretty original sounding black metal act with war themed lyrics and imagery, a prominent use of atmospheric keyboards and programmed drums. The pace of their music is predomiantly slow- to midpaced. Their grim guitar playing style puts them firmly in the black metal camp, (although there are more angular rhythmic riffing in the music too) as well as the raspy vocals do. The atmosphere on "SoulSaviour" is bleak and laden with despair. I imagine the feeling after climbing out of a post nuclear war shelter, just to discover that the world you used to know is now a shattered and and desolate place. Because of the keyboards the music occasionally features an epic (or maybe majestic/monumental/stoic are better words for it) atmosphere too. No matter how I twist and turn it, "SoulSaviour" is just an album that reeks hopelessness and despair.

The short voice sample intro "The Brightest Light" (composed for V:28 by Lina Baby Doll of industrial act Deutsch Nepal) takes us down the road of bleakness right away, featuring as it does, voice samples from first nuclear bomb testing. The keyboard theme that closes the intro is used again in "Unleash the Energy" (played on guitars), which "The Brightest Light" seques directly into. An extremely effectful way of opening the album. The material is pretty consistent in quality and style for the duration of the 40:25 minutes long album. It´s not that varied but to my ears "SoulSaviour" is still a greatly entertaining album.

The band are generally well playing and succeed well in tastefully incorporating synths/keyboards to their sound. The programmed drums on the album, are not there for the lack of a human drummer, but rather as a consequence of a conscious choice by the band. That´s audible as the programmed drums fit right in with the bleak atmosphere and the overall concept of the album. Packed in a clear and powerful sound production "SoulSaviour" is also a very well sounding album and overall a 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating isn´t all wrong.
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