New adventure for Ondfodt.
Now signed to Eisenwald, Owe Inborr (guitar/vocals, Dispyt, Void of Hope), Joel Notkonen (guitar, Aeonian Sorrow, Earthblood, Arctora), Jere Halonen (bass, Arctora, Earthblood) and Tommi Tuhkala (drums, Outlaw, Arctora, Void of Hope) unveil Dimsvall, their fifth album, in 2025.
The album opens with Dimsvall, the eponymous instrumental introduction that allows us to enjoy a moment of melodic calm before Fodarvis Tid darkens the atmosphere, blending oppression and devastating riffs. Owe‘s growls perfectly fit with the rhythm’s coldness, which takes great pleasure in slowing down to hypnotize us, before speeding off again between blistering leads, before the virulent Tuonela takes its place with equally virulent riffs. We also have some more warlike passages, but the highlight of the track is undoubtedly its majestic choruses and mystical choruses, as Futuria relies on a fairly natural progression to carry us into the heart of its whirlwind of fury. The rhythm changes fairly regularly, but in a very harmonious way, as on the blaze on the second half, which turns very aggressive as it welcomes Mathias “Vreth” Lillmåns (Finntroll, …And Oceans, Dispyt) before slowing down to join Svartsyn, who once again bewitches us in a brutal way. However, the track remains quite cold and imposing, even during the eerie, melancholy break that tints the end of the track before joining Grymhejtins Ansikt and its contagious Old School fury doubled by solos from Alexander Kuoppala (Thyrargo, ex-Children of Bodom). The band takes a heady approach on Langton Efter Morkri, a composition where lively rhythms combine with more soaring harmonics, but the track remains fairly short, and Tom Cattermole (Pravitas) joins the musicians to multiply the snarl of Bakom Blekna Skuggor, a track shaped to break necks. The only moment of respite is short-lived, as the musicians return to more intoxicating tones before tackling the nine minutes of Stormin, the Finnish band’s latest creation, where the lead guitar hypnotizes us in turn over a fairly simple but solid rhythmic pattern that doesn’t hold back from setting itself ablaze before finally closing with a soothing acoustic passage. The cassette version also includes a cover of Sign Of An Open Eye, a Gorgoroth composition in which the vocalist appropriates Gaahl‘s vocal parts, both clear and saturated, and breathes new life into this monument to Black Metal history.
Ondfodt continues to enchant us with his icy darkness on Dimsvall, a collection of compositions, each more furious and melodious than the last. The Finnish touch is not about to be lost!
95/100