Valdaudr – Drapsdalen

Død from Blood Red Throne decides to change the name of his other band Cobolt60 after releasing two albums. He invites Vald, the second vocalist of Blood Red Throne, to his band and, as mentioned on Spotify, they name the band Valdaudr, a play on words based on the names Vald and Død.

I haven’t listened to Cobolt60 yet, but as a result of Død’s recommendation, I have been listening to Valdaudr’s 2021 album for days. The music made by the band has been described as Black Thrash in some media, but I think they are much closer to Black Metal, although thrash influences are seen here and there.

As a person who attaches importance to presentation and visuality in albums, one of the things that stuck out to me is the band’s strange logo. They should definitely come up with a nicer one. The album presents the Norwegian black metal of the 90s with the beauty of those old days. Names such as Urgehal, Tsjuder and Djevel come to mind while listening. There are plenty of parts with cold northern melodies. Vald is already the second vocalist of Blood Red Throne and he and Død are no strangers to each other. So I think there is good chemistry between them. The drums were delivered to Taake’s live drummer Rune, who is also responsible for the mixing of the album.

The album offers a very enjoyable listening experience. It flows from beginning to end. Vald’s vocals are as ferocious as can be. I am fond of good black metal vocals. It’s obvious how good a composer Død is. With this performance in black metal, he shows us that there are weapons in his arsenal that he has not yet used.

They preferred their native language in their lyrics. As I was listening to the album, I often thought of Djevel, as I mentioned before, because they have done a lot, including receiving the Norwegian Grammys, and have been very active lately.

If you want to listen to quality Norwegian Black metal, which is clearly produced by competent hands, do not miss the album. Black metal listeners who give this album a chance will surely be satisfied. I especially liked song number 2, Trass of Vrede. Check out this song first to get an idea. I hope they don’t make us wait any longer for the next album. Even though it’s a little late, thank you for this beautiful music.

8,5/10