Mare

I first got into Kampfar when they released Kvass, and I loved that album, so I grabbed this one when it came out as well. Let me say, first and foremost, that I was blown away at the quality of what Kampfar dropped here. While this album picks up where the last one left off as far as themes and general groovy Kampfar mojo goes, this album is so much tighter musically than Kvass was (and I LOVE Kvass). They have clearly improved their playing, writing, and recording skills. The production is much better than their older albums. I know, I know...that's usually a bad thing for Black Metuhl, but for Kampfar it actually works. They are good players and they don't need to cover it up with dirt, and I think they hit that note here.If you've never heard Kampfar, the best way I can describe them is a sort of throwback of 2nd wave black metal with a more standardized song structure than you'd normally find in the black genres. They also have a distinctive groove to their work. I don't want to say that it sounds like melodic death metal, or symphonic black, because it is neither of those...it is most assuredly straight-up black metal, but it definitely has more of a driving rhythm to it than more standard black metal and is a bit more hook-driven.Mare is simply bloody good fun. I love working to this album as it gets me going and doesn't make my brains hurt (ahem, Burzum). They won't win any originality or creativity awards here, but not all music should be groundbreaking...sometimes it just needs to jam, and Kampfar delivers here! I won't go in to the 'best song' stuff that others like to do, and over analyze every aspect of the album. I'll leave that to you. For my part, this is just a great pickup for something fun and fresh that you'll get a ton of spins from. Enjoy!

great album by great band

This album has no viking moments at all. It is very generic black metal. I love all of Kampfar's previous works. They are wrought with cold norwegian winter sounds, but Mare simply drives along and delivers nothing like the others.