Review: Helfró Tap Into the Spirit of the Frozen North with Tálgröf
Iceland. It’s a beautiful place, one I very much hope to visit someday. Its name alone conjures images of rugged volcanic landscapes, hot springs, waterfalls, black sand beaches, midnight sun, and ancient Viking ships sailing across a half-frozen fjord beneath the aurora borealis. Although it is a visually stunning place, it can also be utterly inhospitable for those who are unprepared for the challenges it presents, and that stark contrast also serves as the perfect metaphor for Tálgröf, the newest offering from Reykjavik-based blackened death duo Helfró.
Right from the get-go we are thrown into a maelstrom of furious tremolo riffing and spastic stop-and-go blast beats as the opening track “Jarteikn” hits the ground running with zero hesitation, and that ferocity does not let up until the last chord of the final song has rung out just over half an hour later. Tálgröf is an assault on the senses in the best way possible, a nonstop barrage designed to keep the listener on their back foot the entire time, and one that is well worth enduring.
In spite of the seemingly never-ending wall of sound, there is plenty of finesse to be found here. For one thing, the production is crisp and crystal clear, which greatly accentuates the airtight musicianship of both Ragnar Sverrisson and Simon Thorolfsson and allows something this consistently fast-paced to remain digestible. I personally would like to have heard a pinch more bass in the mix, but that likely just boils down to personal preference, and admittedly that could also have muddied things up a bit.
Another detail which works strongly in their favor is that the songs never outstay their welcome, with a maximum runtime of just over five minutes on the exceedingly atmospheric “Guðlegt Réttlæti”. Speed and ferocity are all well and good but they can also get old fast if not tempered and offset with something else, so the sooner you can get to the point the better off everyone will be. To that end, Helfró have done a great job of peppering in the occasional death metal groove as well, giving the album a distinct and extremely satisfying swagger when needed. If the opening Deicide-esque riffs in the single “Fláráð Fræði” don’t make you start bobbing your head and pulling a face like someone just ripped a ripe hot fart in an elevator, are you really even a metal head?
Simply put, Tálgröf is a high octane, extremely entertaining album which does a great job of capturing the harsh beauty of the Icelandic landscape in sonic form. The guitars cut like the biting winds of a blizzard while the drums rumble and burst like a pyroclastic flow, and all of that chaos comes together to produce something both striking and vivid. Helfró have done their country proud with this one, firmly cementing themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the realm of blackened death metal. Here’s hoping that momentum continues, because if it does then the future looks very bright for a band that spends a good portion of their year shrouded in complete darkness.
Tálgröf is available on Friday, December 1 via Season of Mist Records. You can preorder your copy today.
