Description

Original 2006 press in digipack

Yet another band that refuses to be classified, Madder Mortem is a female fronted group from Norway with the most kick butt female singer in metal today, Agnete Kirkevaag. Agnete is an alto with a vocal range that cannot belong to anyone who is a mere mortal. Sometimes compared to Grace Slick stylistically, Agnete’s ability, range and power surpass the justification for comparison. Unlike the fluffy sopranos present in so many orchestral and gothic metal outfits, Agnete testifies against type with pure raw power, and she does it with style and terrific pitch. ‘Desiderata’ begins with the pounding post punk statement ‘My Name Is Silence’, which finds Agnete belting it out to some beautiful downtuned and dissonant guitar slams. The chorus of this song has an almost sing-along quality, except for the fact that Agnete jumps an octave in the middle of a line. Leaves us mortals with our normal vocal chords feeling very insufficient. She softens it up a bit in the second song ‘Evasions’ a builder that ends with a crashing climax. Agnete illustrates that she is comfortable with pianissimo as well, and demonstrates a beautiful soft alto in ‘Distopia’, dark and moody ‘Cold Stone’, death/goth styled ‘M for Malice’, darkwave ballad ’The Flood to Come’ as dark guitar rhythms chug away in the background. None of the songs on the album really go where you expect, taking strange twists and turns through dark alleys and unexplored passages. The albums final track ‘Hangman’ is a bluesy waltz that builds into a dissonant cacophony of pounding guitars, with probably the most raw and emotional vocal performance to be found this year, by male or female vocalist. The overall sound is dark, atmospheric, gothic, mysterious. The musicians mesh perfectly with each other. The guitars and bass blend beautifully with the sensitively played drums. The Drummer deserves special props for handling transitions and the changing dynamics with such delicacy. Of all the female fronted bands in metal, or even in popular music, this one deserves so much more recognition.

Track list:
1. My Name Is Silence
2. Evasions
3. Plague On This Land
4. Dystopia
5. M For Malice
6. The Flood To Come
7. Changeling
8. Cold Stone
9. Hypnos
10. Sedition
11. Desiderata
12. Hangman