"The White Death" is the third full-length studio album by Norwegian avant-garde/black metal act Fleurety. The album was released through Peaceville Records in October 2017. It´s the successor to "Department of Apocalyptic Affairs" from 2000, so it´s been quite a few years since the last album. Fleurety haven´t been completely inactive though releasing no less than four EPs in the years between 2009 and 2017. Fleurety formed in 1991 and initially played black metal, but eventually drifted towards an avant-garde metal style in the late 90s/early 00s.
The duo lineup of Svein Egil Hatlevik (vocals, drums, percussion, Keyboards) and Alexander Nordgaren (guitars) is still intact from the last album. Fleurety is helped be several session musicians who perform bass, backing vocals, female vocals, keyboards, and flute.
While the musical direction of "The White Death" can still be labelled avant-garde metal, there is a huge difference between the abstract melancholic/often eerie sounding blackened avant-garde rock/metal style of "The White Death" and the all-over-the-place odd avant-garde metal style of "Department of Apocalyptic Affairs". If you didn´t know it you wouldn´t have guessed that it´s the same band releasing the two albums, but you can of course also add Fleurety´s debut full-length studio album "Min tid skal komme" to that pile as it´s a full-on black metal release, which sounds nothing like either "Department of Apocalyptic Affairs" nor "The White Death". So, Fleurity is indeed a shape-shifting creature.
There are a few nods here and there to the band´s black metal past ("Lament of the Optimist" for example features blast beating black metal sections) but "The White Death" is predominantly not a black metal release (a track like "Future Day" for example sounds like a combination of Comus and Dead Can Dance). It´s dark, abstract, and melancholic/eerie sounding avant-garde rock/metal which often consists of just a simple beat, some dissonant guitar riffs/keyboards, and some vocals. Other times there are more musical layers, and it´s definitely an interesting and challenging release. The album is not easily compared to other contemporary releases and Fleurity don´t sound like any other artist either, but artists like Virus, Dødheimsgard, Ved Buens Ende, and Code can maybe at least lead you in the direction of what to expect on "The White Death".
The album features a dusty, raw, organic, and somewhat stripped-down production style, and it suits the material well. To my ears "The White Death" isn´t a perfect release, but it´s much more consistent in style than the eclectic sounding "Department of Apocalyptic Affairs". For avant-garde metal fans eclectic sounding releases usually aren´t an issue and I´m sure there are many who find "Department of Apocalyptic Affairs" a more accomplished and challenging affair than "The White Death", but the more consistent and accessible sound of "The White Death" has other qualities, which make it appealing. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.
