Long time fans of Ihsahn know that, above all else, he is a creature of consistent habits. For the better part of his career he’s consistently released new material every few years, never making the same album twice, dipping his black metal soaked soul into various progressive and avant-garde territories since the his solo career blossomed near twenty years ago. Its now been close to six years since the release of 2018’s Ámr, the longest release gap of Ihsahn’s career. It is no surprise that after such a lengthy wait that self titled duology Ihsahn may very well be the most grandiose and ambitious work of the black metal auteur’s career.
Presented in the form of two separate but intrinsically linked albums; the orchestral blackened progressive metal of Ihsahn proper or the fully realised and developed orchestral compositions, choice is up to the listener. Whichever version you choose to start with, the beginning is the same either way; the playful, grandiose and theatrical orchestral introduction of “Cervus Venator”. Bright inspiring horns shine atop glacial and dramatic strings swelling, introducing one of several motifs revisited repeatedly across the album and introducing elements of mystery, suspense or even turmoil.
“Ihsahn may very well be the most grandiose and ambitious work of the black metal auteur’s career.”
Barreling straight into the massive opening hook of ‘The Promethean Spark’, immediately shifting gears into avant-garde, jazzy, progressive metal. Ihsahn’s trademark raspy black metal howls set the tone over the choppy swing rhythms of the head nodding instrumentals. The orchestral layers underneath the band proper are already vast, string melodies following vocal passages, horns bolstering the dramatic flair, additional percussion accenting rhythmic swings and first of countless undeniably massive chorus’. There is a lot going on from the offset. ‘Pilgrimage To Oblivion’ was a great choice for a lead single, ticking the boxes for the various differently styles represented in full across the album. Evoking the spirits of Emperor past with the tracks orchestral backed black metal ferocity careening into syncopated technical proggy grooves, throwing in an absurdly epic orchestral breakdown for good measure, this is an absolute belter.
To a degree Ihsahn almost feels like the spiritual redemption of the oft overlooked and underrated final Emperor album Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire & Demise. They are similar in a multitude of ways, whether the pairing of the black metal core with orchestral layers for the first time on Ihsahn that Emperor was famous for in their discography much like the introduction of clean vocals and prog songwriting influence on Prometheus; or the ambitious and theatrical storytelling portrayed in the depths of lyrical poetry and compositional sensibilities. Ihsahn has stated in the past that he is a firm believer that an album is more than a collection of songs, but every step on this journey works perfectly one after another and on their own individual merits. This review could easily sink into the realm of an essay, gushing about all the various facets on display for each individual song as they’re all worthy of discussion and attention; the thunderous gallop and dramatic intensity of ‘Twice Born’, the grandiose gothic doom serenade of the delectable ‘A Taste Of The Ambrosia’ or the mechanical rhythmic Meshuggah nods and jazz heavy ‘Hubris and Blue Devils’.
“There is a lot going on from the offset.”
The orchestral elements are strewn throughout the album as additional details in the vast instrumental landscapes. ‘Cervus Venator’, ‘Anima Extraneae’ and ‘Sonata Profana’ remain the same as they were orchestral interludes to begin with, however the rest of the songs have fully explored and realised orchestral compositions. They expertly follow the same theatrical journeys as their prog metal counterparts without the guidance of Ihsahn’s vocals and typical instrumentation. The same emotions are brought out through different means; still managing to reflect black metal ferocity, inquisitive progressive melodies and avant-garde dizziness through conventional classical orchestration and composition. It plays such an important role as well, there are so many melodies and motifs that pop up over and over again, whether overt melodic hooks or details hidden in plain sight behind other instrumental details, revisited and explored across the album(s).
Arguably the greatest success of this album is the fact that Ihsahn has not only composed this complex and layered orchestral beast, but the fact that it happens to be stuffed to the brim with huge catchy hooks and ludicrously massive chorus’. The complexity doesn’t mar the accessibility of the album. ‘Blood Trails To Love’ and ‘The Distance Between Us’ are powerfully enrapturing through their use of orchestration and melodic exploration, but then each’s bombastically massive chorus just adds to the success. Fans of Ihsahn won’t be surprised in the slightest to hear that he’s crafted another audible marvel, but the wider alternative world is set to be completely enamoured under the powerful spells of the black wizard. Ihsahn is an overwhelming success and only further cements the legacy of the Norwegian black metal auteur as one of finest progressive voices of the modern era.