Band:	Wodensthrone
Album:	Curse
Style:	Atmospheric black metal
Release date:	April 23, 2012
A review by:	Troy Killjoy

01. The Remaining Few
02. Jormungandr
03. First Light
04. The Great Darkness
05. Battle Lines
06. Wyrgthu
07. The Storm
08. The Name Of The Wind

The wait is finally over - Wodensthrone are back and more epic than ever.

With the release of the critically acclaimed Loss back in 2009, fans were left waiting for more, with theories and possibilities sprouting from every corner of the Internet. With the current shoegaze trend and somewhat recent limelight being shed on more avant-garde and experimental black metal releases, the band members stuck to their guns and delivered exactly what we were hoping for: a direct continuation with elements of growth.

Curse doesn't take long to set up, skimming by a 39-second folk-infused instrumental intro and charging the field with the more bombastic "Jormungandr". From there, the curse spreads slowly, sculpting darkened shrines and heathen altars out of majestic melodies and mournful acoustic guitar passages. Violins make their appearance from time to time as well, which all adds to the grandiose feel of the album, as if the musicians were composing music to accompany the readings of Woden's own legacy.

Much like Loss, the pagan influences are obvious. That being said, these elements aren't given the same level of focus as seen on its predecessor, giving the music somewhat of a different feel - more dark, yet not any less uplifting. It helps when you can make an extreme metal genre sound graceful, which of course highlights how inspired and confident these guys were after realizing they would be following up one of the most renowned releases in the genre.

Vocally this is quite a step up as well, being that Branwulf's departure initially made it seem as though the band would cease to exist. Instead, the remaining members split vocal duties among themselves and delivered quite a passionate performance, ranging from haunting black metal chants and growls to scarce but ultimately befitting clean vocals.

In addition to the pagan-themed and folkloric songwriting, Wodensthrone seemed to take to the writing process with more anger in mind. Not that the aggression level is cranked up to 11 or anything, but there is a noticeable difference between Curse and Loss in terms of ferocity. With all the focus seemingly put into an enchanting atmosphere, the music itself actually sounds slightly more belligerent. Perhaps the subtle use of some more traditionally raw black metal riffs and blastbeats gives the album a "grim" vibe at times, but the band members' discipline prevents them from wandering off into early Darkthrone territory. Rather, comparisons to Drudkh and Negură Bunget are as appropriate as they've ever been.