Band:	Månegarm
Album:	Vargaresa - The Beginning
Style:	Black metal, Viking folk metal
Release date:	2004
A review by:	Malcolm

Vargaresa:
01. Vargaresa
02. Hymn Till Vinternatt
03. Blod På Min Klinga
04. Nattens Jungfru

Ur Nattvindar:
05. Intro
06. Daughters Of Eve
07. Ett Gammelt Troll
08. Det Sargade Landet
09. Ur Nattvindar

I belong it the category that heard of Månegarm in some way, but can't say when and how. But when I got this new "album" (or what to call it) I knew I recognized the name, but I didn't know from what.

Anyway, the reason why there's a review of a Månegarm album now, when it's over four months to the release of "Vredens Tid" (28th of April 2005) is because so many fans of the band has asked if they couldn't make their two demos available again.
Månegarm listened and decided to put the both demos out on the market again, re-mastered and together on a disc named "Vargaresa - The Beginning", and that's not enough, they also hired Kris Verwimp to draw a cover, and the result is stunning, brilliant so incredible beautiful.

But it's hard for me, that never hard anything from Månegarm and that's not even a blackster, to give you a fair picture of the "album", but I tried, not only because I got the album or because they hails from Sweden, just simply because I always tries to expand my musical view.
And after like 10 listening I have to admit that I like it a little better, but it's still not my cup of tea.

The first demo "Vargaresa" (originally released in May 1996) is the rawer of the two, here were the original vocalist Sven Rosendal still in the band, and this is (as far as I know) the only recording with him behind the mic.
The music is quite good, even if it's a bit rawer, there are pretty much riffing, even if it's sometimes hard to hear, if it's not the fast drums it's the pretty bad production or Sven's very aggressive voice that takes to much room.
The highlight/s here has to be the title-track "Vargaresa", that's fast-paced song with every ingredient for a real Black Metal demo.
Here weren't the folkish influences as present as, I guess, they are today.

The second demo "Ur Nattvindar" (originally released in February 1997) feels more like the demo that would give a band a contract. The production is slightly better and the vocal part has improved (Rosendal is out and Jonny Wranning in), Wranning felt more like a singer for the kind of music Månegarm played here. Unfortunate Wranning left before the recording (he came back to do it anyway because Månegarm hadn't found a new one in time), so this is also the only known recording with this vocalist.
Anyway, the music here is almost in the same class, except that the audio picture feels softer, all the straggling sounds is now pushed into the frames. But still, no real Folk feeling, except the violins, I guess those arrangements were too expensive to use on a self-financed demo.
Highlight/s here has to be the "Det Sargade Landet" that's actually contains some stringed instruments.

This release is best suited for true fans of Månegarm, I would guess only true fans will like it, and I have hard to see that this would be anything to begin with if you want to get into this band, but who knows?

Check Out: The whole package, the very special x-mass gift from Månegarm.