Norway’s Den Saakaldte, named after a Ved Buens Ende-song (taken from their sole album, Written In Waters), were formed in 2006 by Michael ‘Sykelig’ Siouzios, who originates from Greece. He used to be member of one of my favourite Greek combos, Naer Mataron, before he moved over to Norway (back then he acted under the name of Morfeas), and in Norway he used to be part of Paradigma for a couple of years. Then he started his own band, and under the moniker of Den Saakaldte, he released two full lengths (Øl, Mørke Og Depresjon and All Hail Pessimism), as well as some split-EPs, with the likes of Horna and Shining. With the latter, by the way, Den Saakaldte used to share the singer for a while (Niklas Kvarforth), but this one left. New vocalist on this third full length is Icelandic colleague Einar ‘Eldur’ Thorberg Gudmundsson, whom you might know from Fortid, Potentiam and Curse. This guy recently joined Midnattsvrede too, FYI. And then this: the whole has been co-produced and mixed by Marius Strand, who’s known as well for his engineering collaboration with Susperia, Trollfest, In Vain, Chrome Division or Svarttjern, amongst many others.
Kapittel II: Faen I Helvete once again is a typifying Norwegian product, with the trusted characteristics, such as the songs structures / song writing, the atmosphere, and the sound. When it comes to the latter, the sound, I can proudly add that, once again, this is a professional result, yet without forgetting to maintain a grim and raw noise. The atmosphere is very ‘usual’ too: cold and bleak, gloomy and hateful, with a slightly mesmerising touch, caused by the production I just mentioned. And when it comes to the song writing, I cannot but express my approval for the hymns are structured with variation in speed and melody. And ‘melody’, well, it indeed is melodic. At the one hand it has the structures à la the Norwegian bands from the glorious Second Wave-era, and at the other also those elements that refer to a certain Post-mentality. It’s like, let’s say, Throne Of Katarsis and Taake joined forces with Khold and Tulus.
Is there nothing negative to add, then? Well, actually not really. Okay, one might focus of the lack of originality, but I did mention it in hundreds of other reviews before: f*ck originality if the result is close to classic-to-be (I admit, this is slightly, very slightly exaggerated, but you get my point, don’t you). Sometimes being original, or trying to be re-inventing, ends in hilarious or pathetic results. I for myself, but that’s just some nit-picking, do not like the clean vocal parts, yet since these are extremely rare… And there surely are albums within the very same style that are much stronger, but Kapittel II: Faen I Helvete measures up to the standards.