Band:	Domgård
Album:	Myrkviðr
Style:	Black metal
Release date:	April 2012

01. Myrkviðr
02. Nattsvart Urkraft
03. Förhäxad Av Likmarors Kall
04. De Underjordiska
05. Eldfödd
06. Skymningsfärd Över Gravmyr
07. Isöde Vidders Sång
08. Thursmegin
09. Helvigd
10. Angrbodhas Sorgebud

Talk about a turn-around. Domgård, coming off the "strength" of their full-length debut, I Nifelhels Skygd, have come back with a sophomore album that shows signs of improvement in virtually every category compared to its predecessor. It's not often someone such as myself defies one of Metal Storm's most sacred rules, but it has to be said: Myrkviðr is better than the band's debut.

The most noticeable difference is in the songwriting. Spanning 50 minutes over 10 tracks, the moments that felt more drawn out than pulling wisdom teeth are now consolidated chaotic rockin' black metal anthems. And you know what else is gone? The generic attitude that plagued the album as a whole. Instead, Myrkviðr is ripe with fresh ideas - undoubtedly a side-effect of time away from prison. (You know. Because writing music in jail doesn't exactly always work out.)

Thankfully the band members were able to focus on creating some over-the-top aggressive black metal with some elements of punk rock thrown in. That isn't to say this is a contemporary Darkthrone-inspired album, however, as the punk elements are rather minimal on this release, and there is a larger focus on the black metal foundation. And while the professional sounding production job is incredibly thorough with making sure no aspects of the music are left to fend for themselves, there is still a strong sense of the traditional DIY approach.

Another not-so-different difference is the incorporation of some epic guitar leads into the mix. This builds an eerie occult atmosphere - something the band have promoted since their inception - and helps balance the more straightforward assault. For good measure, a hint of symphonic spice is added, which should be appreciated by fans of "less extreme" extreme metal.

In summation, Myrkviðr is an enjoyable black metal album with the same stripped down aggression as punk that benefits from an appropriate use of melody and a terrific production technique. While this is far from being one of the year's best, it's nice to see Domgård evolving for the better and heading in a strong direction for the future.