Download All Shall Fall – Immortal

Released: September 25, 2009 (EU), October 6, 2009 (USA)

Recorded: 2009

Genre: Black metal

Length: 40:09

Label: Nuclear Blast

Producer: Immortal, Peter Tägtgren

Line Up: Abbath Doom Occulta, Apollyon, Horgh, Demonaz Doom Occulta, (Intro on “Unearthly Kingdom” by Are Mundal)

Unlike their 1990s Norwegian black metal colleagues, Immortal aren’t glamorous. The band mostly avoided the church burnings and murders that made black metal notorious– its core of vocalist/guitarist Abbath, drummer Horgh, and lyricist/ex-guitarist Demonaz has remained squeaky clean. They’re not Satanists; they’re inspired by Norway‘s wintry landscapes. Their lyrics often describe a fantasy world called Blashyrkh. For evidence of the band’s un-hipness, do a Google Images search for “Immortal.” You’ll see some of the silliest band photos ever taken. Essentially, Immortal took KISS’ white-faced shtick to risible extremes. The band is the butt of jokes inside and outside of metal.

Its music isn’t, however. Out of the “second wave” of black metal (the “first wave” consisted of proto-black metal like Venom, Bathory, and Hellhammer), Immortal‘s music has held up the strongest. Darkthrone and Ulver don’t play black metal anymore. Enslaved and Satyricon moved towards prog rock and rock’n'roll, respectively. Mayhem and Gorgoroth have suffered from inconsistent lineups leading to inconsistent music.

Immortal‘s core members, on the other hand, have perfected a singular sound. Their debut, 1992′s Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism, was a glorious, lo-fi blur. But the band’s sound gradually sharpened. The drumming became more linear and precise. The guitars grew faster and more focused. Eventually, the band became an interesting combination of opposites. Its streams of blastbeats were hypnotic, yet Abbath’s riffs were grand and melodic, referencing thrash and traditional metal. He sang about big things– war, winds, and winter– in a lovable, Popeye-esque croak. While the band’s makeup came from black metal, its music had none of the genre‘s blasphemy or misanthropy.

All Shall Fall emphasizes this in a big way. Its predecessors this decade, Damned in Black and Sons of Northern Darkness, featured clean production unusual for black metal. All Shall Fall sounds even more polished. It has state-of-the-art production, with highly compressed drums, huge-sounding guitars, and a massive overall soundscape. The sound may be startling for those accustomed to black metal‘s typical rawness. It’s unconventional even for Immortal; the band now has a sound fit for stadiums. But the technical wizardry is appropriate. It brings out the fact that Abbath is a phenomenal guitarist. His axe chugs, sings, and weaves gleaming webs. Horgh no longer sounds like a drum machine left unattended. He pounds hard, buttressing Abbath’s riffs with rousing syncopations. The result is powerful. All Shall Fall may be the closest black metal has come to sounding like the northern winds it references. When Abbath sings about “warriors with cold blazing eyes,” he could be referring to Immortal. source

1. All Shall Fall – 5:57

2. The Rise of Darkness – 5:47

3. Hordes to War – 4:32

4. Norden on Fire – 6:15

5. Arctic Swarm – 4:01

6. Mount North – 5:07

7. Unearthly Kingdom – 8:30

Click Here To Download “All Shall Fall” Full Album

Posted in: Immortal