#uburen

“defiance towards futility” is from the album “usurp the throne”, released via dusktone in 2023.

Uburen - Remembrance (Official Video)

Norway’s Uburen play Viking Metal. But, this isn’t some slickly produced, melodic death metal like Amon Amarth, or some progressive technical metal like Tyr, or some folksy metal like Ensiferum. This is raw, violent black metal in the vein of old Bathory, early Ulver, and the like. They may call themselves “Viking Metal”, and they certainly display that influence in their song titles and lyrics, but this is nowhere near what most would consider “Viking Metal” these days. Don’t make any mistake, these guys aren’t just tremolo picking dissonant chords over constant blast beats with banshee wailing over the top like a vast majority of “raw” or “kvlt” black metal bands do, these guys actually build actual songs around riffs and movements with an attention to pace, timing, and arrangement that sets them far apart from your typical black metal band that mines similar territory. In fact, on Withered Roots, Uburen at times venture into almost “progressive”, for lack of a better term, territory in their song structures and arrangements all while retaining that harsh and raw edge that makes the kvltists purr like kittens. Uburen are not merely a one trick pony, there are actually emotional peaks and valleys here that runs the gamut from harsh rage to simmering melancholy to majestic pride. This trio certainly makes one hellish racket, but in such a good and varied way. All three members share vocal duties and you get a wide array of vocal stylings, from harsh screams to banshee wails to devilish moans to demonic growls, which all combine to really add a lot of character to the mix. What really makes Uburen’s music stand out the most to me is the creative use of the bass. It actually reminds me a lot of Marduk with the way the bass stands out prominently in the mix, especially in that band’s older work. With the band being only a trio and having one guitar, the bass has to cover a lot of sonic ground to fill out the sound and often the bass here acts as more of a second guitar rather than follow a more traditional bass approach. With a sharp, biting, trebly, distorted tone, bassist Bior Kjetilson runs amok all over this stuff and really helps to give Uburen their own distinct flavor and adds many interesting counterpoints to the guitar work and creative touches to the overall sound. Every song on Withered Roots has its own sound and character, which is not easy to do within the confines of this style of black metal, but Uburen manage to pull it off. These guys obviously put a lot of thought and creativity into what they do with an effort to make sure they never really repeat themselves all while staying true to the core of their particular aesthetic. A big problem with many rawer black metal bands is that they tend to sound pretty much the exact same with nearly every song which very quickly loses the listeners attention and interest. This is certainly not a problem with Uburen as the Norwegians constantly keep you guessing and attentive throughout this 10 track album. If you’re looking for some black metal with Nordic overtones that doesn’t sound like your typical band of that ilk and keeps you interested over the course of the entire album, then you need to check out Uburen’s Withered Roots. Review by: http://thatmetalstation.com/album-review-uburen-withered-roots-self-released/

Norwegian viking black metal band UBUREN