Album Review: Svarta Havet – Månen Ska Lysa Din Väg (Prosthetic Records)

Hailing from Turku, Finland, Svarta Havet will release their sophomore album, ‘Månen ska lysa din väg’, via their new label home Prosthetic Records on May 9th. On ‘Månen ska lysa din väg’, the self-described dyster (gloomy) post-hardcore group cast a critical eye over the negative effects of Western colonialism, capital greed and convenience at the cost of sustainability, presenting a rallying cry for change whilst never losing sight of the light that this world has to offer.

Such power, such raw and honest power, yet such refined raw and honest power. This is Svarta Havet as we know and love them, but highly evolved. Having a found a more insistent and ‘hopeful’ way to express themselves, without losing the gloominess that defines their sound. Putting it simply, Månen ska lysa din väg is a brilliant release, but one with layers that deserve to be unpacked.

A sound that combines elements of post-metal, hardcore punk and black metal, and is capped off with strong views on the state of the world. Albeit, with this new album, the group have also refined those views and express their feelings in a more natural way. Ensuring that each will have even more impact to a wider audience, and a wider audience can appreciate this record, even if the extreme aspects might suggest otherwise.

Månen ska lysa din väg does not sit in one genre over another, and is filled with so much vibrant sensations, that is inherently appealing. From the morose melody and metallised mania of Göm Dig (the piano outro is heart-wrenching) to the dramatic post intensity of Avgrunden (this one’s desperation for collective action against a climate catastrophe comes through so strongly) and the vitriolic authority of Alla Sover, which is Svarta Havet at their heaviest sounding. It’s an album that delights.

 

 

Elsewhere, there is Djur’s sonic landscape that ebbs and flows between blackened carnage and pounding savagery. It’s not just the heft of the instruments though, it’s the howl of the vocals. Vocalist Lotta is at her most demonic sounding here and fully expressing how blind and deaf we are to the suffering of animals with respect to human war and destruction. Then there is Under Staden’s focused blast of brutality which switches tempo near the end and transforms into something quite different, but equally pleasing. Whereas Misstag is a lot more melodically experimental and stands out for that reason. Although be under no impression that it is lacking in fire because that’s not the case at all.

Personal highlights though? Go back to the start of the album where you will find the epic Härlig Är Jorden and right at the end, Ditt Rike, a track that burns brightly with vibrant post heaviness. These are my two favourite tracks, but the gap between all the tracks on his album is minuscule, such is the focused brilliance of it all. What a triumphant release it is.

Svarta Havet – Månen ska lysa din väg Track Listing:

1. Göm Dig
2. Härlig Är Jorden
3. Avgrunden
4. Alla Sover
5. Djur
6. Under Staden
7. Misstag
8. Ditt Rike

Links

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