Behold! The mighty vikings are once again out to rape your wives, steal your children and plunder your homes!

With this, Helheim takes a step up from the awesome The Journeys and the Experiences of Death. This is a little different compared to its predecessor. The tremolo riffs are not that dominant, the production is much better and clearer, and the atmospheric keyboards are more audible here. This is a somewhat more mellow release, without loosing the rawness, great and epic melodies, the anger and the emotions. The biggest difference though, is the language. This is mainly sung in Norwegian, except Northern forces and Altered Through Ages Constant in Time. The lyrics are translated to English in the booklet for international fans. It took me a good while to realize why the hell they did this. Their dialect is pretty odd, and it sounded out of place on the first couple of spins. I didn't understand why until I took the time to study the lyrics. The Norwegian lyrics is strongly influenced by norse mythology. By putting in ancient and untranslatable words here and there, they create a perfect atmosphere. The songs in english are on the other hand much more straight-forward and more intense.

As you've probably guessed by now, this is more progressive than their previous efforts. It does not surprise me, since The Journeys and the Experiences of Death showed signs of the band going in that direction. However, you shouldn't expect anything like the recent Enslaved, as this is more on the rawer side. Det Norronne Alter (The Norse Altar) kicks of the record with dark and slow riffs and haunting vocals. It pretty much sets the standard for the rest of the record. Northern Forces is one of the few fast songs here, which fans of Keep of Kalessin might very well appreciate. Om Smerte og Liv (About Pain and Life) carries on in an epic manner, and so does the tempowhore Om Tilblivelsen av Gapende Tomhet (About the conceivment from seemingly emptiness). The usual Interlude Helheim 6 Slips into one of the absolute highlights of this album. Andevind (Spiritwind). It contains everything this band is known for. Raw vocals, flourishing melodies, temposhifts and a raw and epic feel.

The ending trio contains nothing more nor less than the other songs. They carry the epic torch without causing any boring moments. Each song on this record draws you closer to the campfire, to the warcries, the mead and the axes. The atmosphere and the bastant songwriting grabs you by the throat and demands your attention. From Det Norronne Alter to Svart Seid (Black Sorcery), the vikings of Helheim take you on a epic musical plunder trough storms, pain, sorcery and finally; victory.