Album Review: Vreid - The Skies Turn Black
Reviewed by Oli Gonzalez
Sognametal. After all these years of consuming metal and it’s countless subgenres, here’s a new one to me! A subgenre in which Norway’s Vreid have been credited as founders of, blending the darkened intensity of black metal with the more subtle elements of folk music. This is whilst exploring themes of local history and culture, and other more personal topics. Perhaps this is a suitable way to describe Vreid’s complex sound that has been carefully crafted and refined over the bands long storied career. A career which now sees them on the eve of their 10th studio album, “The Skies Turn Black”. One in which the band experienced personal hardships and struggles during the album’s writing, describing it as “inspiring and hell”. Personal themes that seep into the very fabric of the album. Take the album’s opening song, for instance.
You can say that the sound emerges from the very bowels and depths of Norway’s wilderness. This is both literal and metaphorical as a late night stay in a remote cabin spawned “one of those rare creative sparks”, with the product being ‘From These Woods’. Here you’ll be introduced to a rich folk undertone characterised by the soothing opulent strings segment in the opening passage to the song, and the intermittent deployment of cleaner chant like vocals adding an eerie ethereal quality. As well as the subtle introduction of background synths to add a medieval like timbre. Mixed with the more traditional KVLT style shrieks and an array blazing guitar riffs adds more of what you’d expect from a band with a back metal spine, along with the blast beats which emerge later. Though none of them overpower the mix and alongside the steady pace makes for a rather inviting and aesthetically pleasing take on black metal!
Who was there for Black Sabbath’s farewell show Back To Beginning in July 2025? Bassist Jarie was, and this serves as the creative impetus for ‘The Skies Turn Black’. The skies did turn black when the Prince Of Darkness himself Ozzy Osbourne left this world only a few weeks after this once in a lifetime concert. The whole song offers more of a classic heavy metal vibe that pays homage to Black Sabbath themselves, whilst the lyrics direct and straight to the point in a touching tribute:
“The stage was yours, the music now forever ours”
“Prince Of Darkness, let his kingdom come’.
Grab a tissue. It’s ok. Rest In Power, sweet Prince.
How often do black metal bands write the soundtrack to movies? Not very often, but Vreid’s instrumental effort ‘Kraken’ is the eerie and chilling soundtrack to the movie of the same name. What makes this even more special is that the band worked with a music teacher at the very start of their careers on this, in a true special full circle moment.
‘Build Destroy’, and ‘A Second Death’ offer more traditional tastes of black metal which are as raw and aggressive as they are on-the-nose in their delivery. Though with the modern clean production values and not the baked potato quality recordings you often hear with early black metal. This modern forward thinking approach is not just limited to the production approach. As we’ve seen, the band aren’t afraid to flirt with other genres. An unexpected highlight came in the
shape of ‘Smile Of Hate’. A gothic-doom inspired anthem which soul-piercing lead guitars and haunting piano segments as heavy as the death of a loved one.
Inviting guest musicians can add dimensions to the music that isn’t available within the band’s ranks. Vreid invite Agnete Kjolsrud from Djerv to inject her ethereal cleans to the band’s sound. The problem is, how will Vreid play this song live? Or is there no intention of it ever leaving the studio? Though Vreid have proven to be resilient problem solvers so surely they’ll figure this out. Maybe we’ll see a guest appearance on stage when the band hit mainland Europe alongside Vomitory, and Hypocrisy later in the year. The first time many will lay eyes on Vreid and will hear the sound of Sognametal.
Until then, there’ll be plenty of time to become more acquainted with the band. “The Skies Turn Black” serves as a more than adequate introduction to Vreid. In a genre full of cliches “The Skies Turn Black” offers fresh impetus by a band furiously devoted to writing music entirely on their own terms.
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