Forget about delicacy with Bastarður.

Created in Iceland by Aðalbjörn “Addi” Tryggvason (vocals/guitar/bass, Sólstafir) and Birgir Jónsson (drums), the band unveils Satan’s Loss of Son, their first album, with “some guests : Marc Grewe (Insidious Disease, ex-Morgoth), Alan “Nemtheanga” Averill (Primordial, Dread Sovereign), Ásgeir Trausti, Júlli T, Siggi Hjálmur, Ragnar Zolberg (Sign, Pain of Salvation, formerly live for Solstafir), Thrainn Árni Baldvinsson (Skálmöld) and Flosi Þorgeirsson.

The album begins with Viral Tumor, an as energetic and raw as dirty composition that pays tribute to the band’s Crust/Punk. Riffs are simple, howlings are communicative, we do not need more than this to nod while enjoying every bit of this saturation, that will also come with Neonlight Blitzkrieg after a too quiet introduction. Pure violence surfaces again over a blast, and the two voices respond to each other while adding Old School Death Metal influences, then Satan’s Loss of Son unveils some melancholy into its dissonance. Even vocals offer an intense and seizing touch, reminding an old period of the vocalist’s other band, then Burn reconnects with this dirty energy while keeping the visceral strength. The song is still very hectic, taking advantage of this raw basis to use blast and an effective rhythmic, while airy leads carry our mind, but The Whispering Beast absolutely wants us to mosh and spreads hypnotic leads. You all recognized the guest on Black Flag Fools (Alan “Nemtheanga” Averill, for those who don’t), offering an impressive contrast that still perfectly fits to this duality between melancholy and intensity. The song is very short, but it drops us on Afturhalds Kommatittir, a strangely melodic track. We keep the energy, but groovy tones slip into the composition, while Rise Up, the last song, offers a slow and suffocating dissonance. Heaviness strengthens those shrilling riffs, on which haunting melodies easily alight while allowing a last dissonant part.

Bastarður wants to play with dirt, dissonance and a raw energy, which perfectly fits to the ambience of Satan’s Loss of Son. Guests offer some different shades to the band’s Crust/Punk, that will highly please to Old School, melancholy and rage lovers.

90/100

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