Mork Gryning - Mork Gryning

Mork Gryning's eponymous record is slowly but surely making it's way into my favorite black metal albums of all time.  I'm not sure how this band, and this album in particular have flown under the radar for as long as they have.  Hopefully that'll change, although it matters not for the band, cuz they broke up right after releasing this in '05...but what a swansong!
The centrepiece of Mork are the riffs which vary between tech thrash, punishing polyrhythmic death, and epic melodic black metal. The melodies are not your typical Swedish black metal fare, but are clearly Nordic...folk without being aggressively folky if you catch my drift. Definitely epic in a subtle way.  Songwriting is akin to being dropped from Valhalla to find yourself plummeting ever faster into the waiting maw of a fiery hell only to be snapped from certain annihilation by some sort of giant flying creature...maybe that giant fucking dog from Neverending Story.  So in a word the songwriting is exhilarating. Special mention has to be given to the drumming which is some of the most inventively tight I have ever heard...a black metal Jarzombek.
Mork Gryning is a rousing success that combines the tastefulness of Dark Tranquility circa Damage Done, the ravishness of Keep of Kalessin circa their Reclaim ep, the funky obtuseness of Atrocity circa Hallucinations, and the distinct baroque choral sensibility of Gentle Giant circa anytime.  Highly Highly Highly recommended.

Mork