Utgard is the fifteenth studio album by Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved, released 2 October 2020 by Nuclear Blast.[1]
| Utgard | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 2 October 2020 | |||
| Recorded | 2019 | |||
| Genre | Progressive black metal | |||
| Length | 44:46 | |||
| Label | Nuclear Blast | |||
| Producer | Iver Sandøy, Ivar Bjørnson, Grutle Kjellson | |||
| Enslaved chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editUtgard is the first Enslaved album with new drummer Iver Sandøy, who had previously co-produced several of the band's albums and joined full-time following the departure of longtime drummer Cato Bekkevold in 2018.[2] The album was originally scheduled for release in early 2020, but was delayed until October of that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3][4]
The album is titled after a location in Norse mythology[5] and includes some Norse lyrics and song titles.[6] A video, filmed in Iceland, was released for the song "Jettegryta".[6] Utgard continues to display some of the band's early black metal roots while continuing their experimentation with 1970s progressive rock.[6]
Critical reception
editThe album received mostly positive reviews upon its release. Kerrang! noted that "Enslaved take the listener through a frightening landscape in Norse mythology where the gods have no control and chaos reigns" and called the band "masters" and "elder statesmen" of progressive black metal.[7] Blabbermouth noted that the album "feels like the true culmination of Enslaved's ascendancy to the throne of modern prog-metal wizardry."[5] The Prog division of Loudersound concluded that Utgard is the ultimate result of musical experiments that the band had been conducting over their past several albums.[8] In the words of Antihero, "Enslaved deliver their elite brand of Prog/Extreme Metal that they have so meticulously hammered out over the past three decades."[9] Metal Hammer named it as the 9th best metal album of 2020.[10]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Ivar Bjørnson (under the name I. Peersen); except tracks 1, 4, 6, 7 with lyrics by Grutle Kjellson (under the name K. Grutle)
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fires in the Dark" | 6:00 |
| 2. | "Jettegryta" | 4:56 |
| 3. | "Sequence" | 6:39 |
| 4. | "Homebound" | 5:30 |
| 5. | "Útgarðr" | 1:51 |
| 6. | "Urjotun" | 4:21 |
| 7. | "Flight of Thought and Memory" | 6:22 |
| 8. | "Storms of Utgard" | 4:38 |
| 9. | "Distant Seasons" | 4:31 |
| Total length: | 44:46 | |
Personnel
edit- Ivar Bjørnson – electric guitars, acoustic guitars, synthesizers, keyboards, sequencer, FX, backing vocals (track 1)
- Grutle Kjellson – vocals, bass, synthesizer
- Iver Sandøy – vocals, drums, percussion, keyboards, FX
- Håkon Vinje – keyboards, piano, vocals
- Arve Isdal – electric guitars, acoustic guitars, backing vocals (track 1)
Additional personnel:
- Martin "Bellhammer" Horntveth – percussion, synthesizers, glockenspiel, tubular bells, rototoms, programming (track 3)
- Inger Sunneva Peersen, Sonja Elisabeth Peersen – backing vocals (track 9)
Charts
edit| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[11] | 59 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] | 162 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] | 59 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] | 42 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] | 30 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] | 48 |
References
edit- ^ "ENSLAVED | Utgard - Nuclear Blast USA Store". shop.nuclearblast.com. Archived from the original on 2021-03-30. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Munro, Scott (June 2018). "Drummer Cato Bekkevold parts ways with Enslaved". Prog Magazine. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Blabbermouth (2020-03-24). "ENSLAVED To Release 'Utgard' Album In The Fall; Cover Artwork Unveiled". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "Enslaved Announce New Album Utgard, Unveil Artwork". news.yahoo.com. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 2021-07-13.
- ^ a b Blabbermouth (2020-09-28). "Utgard - ENSLAVED". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ a b c DiVita, Joe (2020-07-10). "Enslaved's New Song 'Jettegyrta' Is Proof They Can Do No Wrong". Loudwire. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "Album Review: Enslaved – Utgard". Kerrang!. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ Ewing, Jerry (October 2020). "Enslaved - Utgard review". Prog Magazine. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "Album Review: ENSLAVED - Utgard". Antihero Magazine. 2020-10-01. Retrieved 2020-10-07.
- ^ "The 50 best metal albums of 2020". Metal Hammer. Future plc. January 8, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Enslaved – Utgard" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Enslaved – Utgard" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Enslaved – Utgard" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Enslaved: Utgard" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Enslaved – Utgard" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 October 2020.