Trelldom - ...By The Shadows...

Band:	Trelldom
Album:	...By The Shadows...
Style:	Black metal
Release date:	September 13, 2024
A review by:	F3ynman

01. The Voice Of What Whispers
02. Exit Existence
03. Return The Distance
04. Between The World
05. I Drink Out Of My Head
06. Hiding Invisble
07. By The Shadows

You either die kvlt or live long enough to see yourself become avant-garde.

Trelldom are a band most people probably know as the other major project of Gorgoroth’s vocalist Gaahl. Their formation dates back to 1992, the earliest days of Norwegian black metal. And, as one would expect, their music sounded on their first albums very much like typical Norwegian black metal. Fast, tremelo-picked riffs, raspy cries from cold, creepy woods, and blurry black-and-white photos for cover art. Yet now, 17 years after their last album, Trelldom have chosen to reinvent their entire approach.

…By The Shadows… may retain the band’s signature use of ellipses in their album titles, but, musically, it follows a completely different trajectory, veering away from their straightforward raw black metal days to aim for a more psychedelic, avant-garde black metal style. The most prominent new addition is studio musician Kjetil Møster, whose electronic elements infuse Trelldom’s sound with an off-kilter, unsettling edge. Møster also provides discordant saxophone and clarinet playing throughout the album, which, however, can become overly whiny and annoying at certain occasions.

Another feature that sets this album apart from Trelldom’s previous endeavors is the vocal performance. Gaahl chooses here to use a majority of clean singing and only occasionally harsher vocals, instead of the other way around. His delivery is quite diversified, providing everything from lamenting wails to ominous chants, from reverberating growls to feeble mutterings.

Trelldom’s new approach is a very interesting development for the band, but it isn’t flawless. On the one hand, their atmosphere is more immersive than it’s ever been, crafting convincingly nightmarish soundscapes on songs like “Hiding Invisble”. On the other hand, the slow, hypnotic pace can feel rather lethargic, lacking any really engaging riffs to hook the listener. “I Drink Out Of My Head” is an exception, providing the most intriguing melodies, in my opinion. For the most part, though, the album just meanders along with little to no standout moments.

Still, the style of this album—focusing on a stifling, haunting atmosphere with a chaotic avant-garde flair—is a promising first step in a new direction, one that few 30-year-old bands would dare take, let alone manage to pull off. As they’ve apparently signed a multi-album deal with their record label, it seems that …By The Shadows… will mark the first chapter in a new era for Trelldom. I, for one, am curious where this path will take them next.