IHSAHN — Undercurrent (review)

IHSAHN — Undercurrent album cover Single · 2010 · Progressive Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Conor Fynes
'Undercurrent' - Ihsahn (Single)

Released digitally as an exclusive promo for the then-upcoming album 'After', progressive black metal musician and former Emperor frontman Ihsahn has picked a rather irregular single here. At ten minutes long, it is one of the longest, most involved tracks on the record, and the biggest grower. However, while certainly not a typical choice of promo for an album, the song 'Undercurrent' stands as being one of the highlights of the album, and a great piece of music all its own.

Beginning with some mellow yet haunting guitar picking and smooth vocals from Ihsahn, 'Undercurrent' takes its time to get going. Building very steadily from a melodic and laid-back approach to a darker, heavier sound a few minutes in, the song's gradual build can feel a bit inconsequential at the first few listens, but it does do wonders for the song once it finally hits its stride. A good four minutes into the track, 'After's defining tenor saxophones kick in with the track's main theme, an apocalyptic melody that is repeated throughout the album, and is quite beautiful, although very sad.

As with all great longer tracks, 'Undercurrent' also has a fantastic climax and finale, where Ihsahn's clean vocals have never sounded so powerful, ironically sounding a bit like a blues or gospel singer in the sheer passion and intensity of the voice and ad-libbing. Although the song is fairly mid-tempo and moreso a composition based in development of ideas over mere energy, there are a few parts towards the end that feature great soloing from Ihsahn and rapidfire drumwork to break up the pace. While not my personal favourite track from 'After', Ihsahn's 'Undercurrent' would certainly be a great track to be introduced to the album with, featuring virtually all of the things that made the album a success.
Share this review

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Hin helga kvöl Atmospheric Sludge Metal
SÓLSTAFIR
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Cycles of Suffering Black Metal
BURIAL OATH
Buy this album from MMA partners
Facilis Descensus Averno Death Metal
SAEVUS FINIS
Buy this album from MMA partners
Merciless Crossover Thrash
BODY COUNT
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us