Written by Unhealer on 05.05.2016 at 07:20
post-After

Like the previous one, a pretty solid release. I find it a lot more experimental this time but I defo love the direction Ihsahn is taking his solo work.

Written by Diverge on 05.05.2016 at 00:54

What a letdown. This is second-rate Ihsahn at best, and there's little that compels me to listen to this again. I greatly enjoyed his last album as well, and I'm angry he swerved towards a more boring approach with this one.

Pretty much my sentiments, Das Seelenbrechen was awesome and treaded into some much bolder, borderline Avantgarde territory. This, however, seems to be sitting towards much more of a "standard prog" sound, which, after that album, is pretty disappointing

Listened to it a few times during work today. Pretty good as far as first impressions go. Pressure and Celestial Violence the highlights for me. Will need to listen more.

Sure enough, after the experimental madness of Das Seelenbrechen (which I liked a lot), Arktis sounds a bit too tame. Still it sounds very much like Ihsahn album, which makes it a very pleasant record to listen to. I understand the point of view of, for example, Apothecary, as I'm also disappointed with the general direction of the album, but I still find that I can enjoy listening to it.
Favourite tracks: Mass Darkness, Frail, Crooked Red Line.

Ihsahn's new cd been in my Playlist since April non-stop because like all his solo epics, His sound is very unique.

At first glance this seems to be Ihsahn's most straightforward release yet, but it should be given credit for being consistent from start to finish. I was given the impression that Ihsahn, essentially, is an expert songwriter after listening to Arktis. The album's first few songs are notably accessible and hook-laden, but still have a distinctive twist that Ihsahn manages to merge with whichever style he's playing. Plus there are frequent dabbles with ambient/electronica/industrial ("South Winds" primarily), and even the bonus track-which really shouldn't have been a mere bonus track considering that it makes my hair stand tall every time I listen to it-offers some of the most emotionally deep musicianship to come out of Ihsahn's long-winded career. Whether or not he continues down the route hinted at on Arktis or creates yet another creative curveball, it's probably going to be interesting and engaging stuff.