J-Man LIK was formed in 2000 by Graav (of Armagedda fame) as a black rock project, and the band released three full-length albums before briefly splitting up. After their short hiatus, they reformed in 2010 and this album quickly followed. The Second Wind was my entrance into LIK's discography, and it's clear from the beginning that their unique sound should definitely appeal to people looking for something different than your standard black metal affair. The album isn't without its flaws, and a feeling of monotony sets in far too frequently for me to consider this a "great" observation, but LIK's original sound and solid riffs should attract plenty of new fans.

The Second Wind sounds like a cross between filthy garage rock and black metal. The thin, buzzing guitar sound and lo-fi production hint towards black metal, but the actual riffs themselves are much more based in rock music, as are the 4/4 drum patterns. The vocals are a mix between clean, semi-sung sounds and more standard black metal-styled vocals. Although this is a very interesting idea for a musical experiment, I think that The Second Wind could've ultimately been a much stronger effort. There is very little (if any) instrumental variation throughout the entire album, and a "samey" feeling develops just after the first few songs. The songwriting is a tad monotonous and simply leaves me cold - the music fails to speak to me in really any way. The thin, lo-fi production doesn't help in this regard either. It's a shame, really, because The Second Wind truly could have been something special, but its flaws keep it from ever reaching excellence.

I haven't really been blown away by The Second Wind due to the fairly monotonous atmosphere and weak production, but people who are previously established as fans of LIK may want to give this one a shot. It's certainly not a bad album by any stretch, and the great musicianship and decent riffs keep this from ever reaching below mediocrity, yet I still feel like something's missing. Regardless of my reservations, if you're curiosity has been peaked by the band's "black rock" sound, The Second Wind certainly isn't a bad purchase. 3 stars are warranted here.

Vehemency Just when I had said that it’s awesome to hear an Armagedda member still doing black metal in De Arma because Armagedda has been rotting in the grave for a long time, a new LIK album emerges unexpextedly as well. I’m not familiar with this black-metal-meets-filthy-rock band’s whole discography - I remember hearing the 2003 debut Må Ljuset Aldrig Nå Oss Mer a year ago or so - but The Second Wind most certainly rises my interest to look better into the older albums as well, because I do think that The Second Wind is that good.

The album doesn’t try to fish fans with modern gimmicks. That would be a good summary of the whole album. Lo-fi drumlines don’t provide technical fills nor beats but do keep the songs intact with steady 4/4 beats while the rusty guitar sound delivers malicious riffs and melodies, at times rising to almost ethereal levels of beauty (”The Other Realm” and the epic instrumental outro) and at times just rocking the hell out, like in the straightforward ”Death Breeder” and the first half of ”A Filthy Ride”. Vocals range from the folky masculine chants heard in Lönndom, most perfectly executed in the touching chorus of ”Kallad till Bortgång”, to raspier mid-range screams and muttering.

The Second Wind takes its time to open - after all, the grey lo-fi sound isn’t so luring at first - but the melodies here a truly good in the end. LIK fans will as well love these 40 minutes, that’s for sure. Also, anyone who’s up for some great riffing that is both evil and beautiful and who doesn’t require polished productions from his/her music won’t lose anything by checking out The Second Wind, an album that is a very welcome return from a band I thought was dead already.