Often labeled as an avant-garde black metal band, Norway's Dodheimsgard, who now pretty much go by the name of DHG, sound almost anything but black metal on their latest release Supervillain Outcast. Sure, there are moments of thunderous blast beats and razor sharp tremelo picked riffage on songs like "Vendetta Assassin" and "Ghostforce Soul Constrictor", but this is more of a Mr. Bungle-meets-Korn-meets-Eno-meets-Satyricon than anything resembling traditional Norwegian black metal along the lines of Mayhem, Emperor, Immortal, Gorgoroth, or 1349. Many of the songs here have a certain electronic/dance/trip hop quality, and the vocal styles fluctuate between death/black growls, hardcore shouts, and gothic spoken word ramblings. All of this is hard to follow at times, as the band never stays on one style from song to song, but it does keep things interesting from a variety standpoint. It's almost as if there are two bands performing here, one who can pummel the listener with some punishing extreme metal, and the other who favors the flavors of the avant-garde, and not afraid to delve into electronica and trip-hop. It all makes for a disjointed listen, and although you can commend the band for diving into Nine Inch Nails-ish territory on a piece like "All is Not Self", you have to wonder how the black metal faithful are going to take all of this.
Supervillain Outcast is certainly adventurous music, and if you have an ear for avant-garde stuff that pushes the boundaries of what we normally think of as black metal, give this a try. However, if you are a traditionalist, one listen might quickly alienate you from what DHG are trying to achieve here, so be warned.
Track Listing
1. Dushman
2. Vendetta Assassin
3. Snuff Dreams Are Made Of
4. Horrorizon
5. Foe X Foe
6. Secret Identity
7. Vile Delinquents
8. Unaltered Beast
9. Apocalyppticism
10. Chrome Balaclava
11. Ghostforce Soul Constrictor
12. All Is Not Self
13. Supervillain Serum
14. Cellar Door
15. 21st Century Devil
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