EP Review: Fimbul Winter - What Once Was
Reviewed by Sam Jones
So this is interesting. Fimbul Winter are an extremely new band but their members are veterans of extreme metal, where three of them are former Amon Amarth members. Looking to release What Once Was for November 14th, Fimbul Winter saw its inception after said former band mates got together to perform Amon Amarth’s 1994 Demo The Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter. What was meant only as a one-off planted the seed for what is now a band seeking to revive the earlier brutality from Amon Amarth’s earliest days. With five tracks in tow Fimbul Winter look to throw upon the masses a torrent of death bound in sound synonymous with Sweden’s early death metal years. Given these guys are already popping up across social media, I thought I’d dive in.
Its only natural people will conjure the comparisons to Amon Amarth given the history most members of Fimbul Winter have but its unavoidable. What is telling is Fimbul Winter’s leaning towards the icy, more piercing variant of death metal as opposed to Amon Amarth’s now melodic-dominant approach. Fimbul Winter feature melody to some degree within their songwriting but the songwriting doesn’t feel wholly devoted to infusing their soundscape with melody; its clear the band wanted to exert just as much raw strength as they did with melodic infusions. If we use Scandinavian iconography its like the band place us at the vanguard of the shield wall rather than merely hearing songs sung of that shield wall. But the band aren’t looking to alienate fans who may be fans of Amon Amarth either, for if one hears the vocals they’ll know that, while they harness a blackened and raspy edge, they aren’t the most scathing delivery. Fimbul Winter therefore could be said to have gone into this EP with the intention of writing music fans may be accustomed to, but not so different that they can’t bring them over to their own camp.
This might be an EP but that hasn’t prevented Fimbul Winter from crafting five tracks that feel to have the full weight of a high-calibre mix behind them. As a result this EP feels like a mini-album given the amazing weight Fimbul Winter throw into their sound, allowing us a glimpse of what a full length could feel like. The production is great because it doesn’t feel superfluous, it doesn’t try and compete with their presupposed rival, instead sticking to its own guns, understanding the production required for the sound they desire. The bass inherent is vast yet never comes across as overwhelming, where bass drums pound the air and mark themselves as pieces you can’t ignore, but the bass has a ceiling that, while skirting at every moment, never exceeds beyond. Power is here in droves but its not so excessive that direction and clarity are thereby threatened.
Norse mythology details Fimbul Winter is the grand precursor to Ragnarok, the war and death of the gods, and its because of this detail that exemplifies the band’s harder-leaning songwriting. With such a name, and knowing the mythological connotations, Fimbul Winter write music that does strike harder and deeper than Amon Amarth may; if the latter writes death metal looking back on heritage then Fimbul Winter place you in the moment as the history actively unfolds. Their songwriting doesnt feel so rounded out, nor do their riffs, just like the vocals; there’s a particularly darker sheen to Fimbul Winter’s aesthetic as one feels the change in the air, the vocals are more grounded and riffs feel stretched across longer periods. Seldom do the band engage with solos and when they do, they’re played with minimal flare, to the point where one could confuse them for extended sequences in verses or bridges. On the whole Fimbul Winter are more focused upon a singular point than the sweeping, broad strokes Amon Amarth excel at.
In conclusion, Fimbul Winter will be a band on many people’s lips as the year closes and i know people will start up those debates against Amon Amarth. My two cents are that each band approaches Scandinavian mythology from different angles, utilising different philosophies in how songwriting is used to further that mythology on record. Its therefore fortuitous that Fimbul Winter are genuinely different to Amon Amarth, an avid fan of the latter myself I picked up few outright similarities as Fimbul Winter are leaning towards that hardened, blackened quality Amon Amarth simply don’t come near. Fimbul Winter are also more insular, their sound more introspective, more personal, placing yourself amidst the landscape and hardship they play about. The melodic flow is here in places but such an approach is welcomed to soften the blow that Fimbul Winter’s blizzard of an assault brings forth, providing warmth and a defrosting quality for those whom this EP is their first exposure to either Amon Amarth or Fimbul Winter. I’d be more than happy to see Fimbul Winter release a full length, perhaps next year, but until then this EP serves as a welcome alternative angle to Norse mythology and culture that Amon Amarth has otherwise been dominating. Variety in the sound of Scandinavian and viking culture does not negate what has otherwise been viewed as its sole sound, if anything it greatly aids in fleshing it out. Norse mythology is vast and Fimbul Winter have truly staked their claim in it.
