Svard may be a brand-new project, but the fact that it features members of Ahab and In Mourning is guaranteed to quicken the pulse of metalheads everywhere before even a note of this debut EP is heard. A five-track offering, released via Argonauta Records, The Rift takes elements of traditional heavy metal, doom and sludge and infuses it with a hefty dose of psychedelia, the resultant offering recalling Crack The Skye-era Mastadon duelling with Sabbath and Maiden.
Opening the EP is Hallowed Grounds, an atmospheric, minute-long soundscape that sounds like it was recorded in the depths of a swamp. It soon gives way to the surging A Rift In The Green, which is based around the sort of gargantuan groove that makes a mosh pit sway in unison like barley in the wind. The production, as you might expect given the pedigree of the various members, is exceptional – powerful, yet raw; and the moonshine-washed chorus is the icing on the (hash) cake. It’s a strong introduction to the band, one that makes the listener sit up and take notice, and the thunderous Palaeocene Flames keeps the pace taut as the stacked vocals of Tim Nedergard, Pierre Stam and Bjorn Petterson weave between the riffs. It’s a cool track, but it sits very much within its genre, whereas the stuttering riff of The Burning Asylum takes a defiant step outside the comfort zone, the riffs crackling with electricity as Cornelius Althammer’s percussion circles and pounces. An EP highlight, the track combines deft musicianship, dense riffing and just enough melody to ensure that, for all of the violence of the attack, the overall piece remains memorable.
Up until now, the EP has been solid, albeit rooted in familiar ground. However, final track The Portal upends all that. A lengthy, progressively-minded exploration, it feels like a summation of where the EP has been and a powerful pointer as to where the band could head next. With a lengthy build up, when the track finally explodes into kaleidoscopic life, it works its way through dense, neo-psychedelic pastures with hypnotic effect.
At the outset, The Rift promises to be a solid, if somewhat familiar, take on sludge metal. The first sign that the band have ambitions beyond that, the stuttering behemoth that is The Burning Asylum, raises expectations, but even so The Portal takes things considerably further than could have been anticipated from a five-track EP. Aptly-named, The Portal holds out considerable hope for the future, opening a doorway to the sort of sonic possibilities that it takes most bands a whole career to discover. Essentially, The Rift does a remarkable job of consolidating the various band members’ pasts , whilst offering a potent glimpse of Svard’s future. Packed with potential, this is an awesome EP and a band to watch very closely indeed. 8.5/10
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