Nidsang's first album, 2007's
The Mark of Death, is composed of mostly unwavering, sand-blasting black metal; the kind that's characterized by agonized screeches, buzzsaw guitars, and a full-on percussive blastbeat blitz, recorded with virtually no bottom end for an exceedingly tinny sound. No doubt, this is what Hell will be like for disco-loving tuna fishermen: eternal damnation subjected to utterly un-danceable black metal, as heard from the inside of a crammed tuna can. Pale-faced children of the night will be in hog Heaven, though, rejoicing as their sisters' pancake makeup is smeared under the sweltering flames of emblematic tracks like "Crush the Masses," "Rising Horns," and "Whither and Die." The title track also stands out thanks to a particularly malevolent explosion of aggression (and somebody's young niece denying Jesus Christ), while the atmospheric near silence of "Vindar Fran Helvetet" offers a welcome respite from the surrounding onslaught, and a blistering cover of "Lamb," by black metal primitives Von, fits in with its surroundings like a glove. Ultimately,
Nidsang don't offer anything remotely original on
The Mark of Death, but fans of
Dark Funeral,
Marduk and other such Scandinavian blasphemers will find what they're looking for here. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia