Coffin Joe So, 2011 seems to be a good year for black metal fans with the return of Kampfar. The album Mare is a dark grandiose experience, which is both melodic, brutal and haunting at the same time. What makes this album so great, is the way Kampfar manges to incorporate different elements into each song, making them easy to distinguish from each other, and avoids the monotony which some black metal records suffer from.

The opening track Mare is really strong and help define the sound, that is Kampfar. Right from the opening scream, you know they've hit it spot on. The lead singer Dolk's raspy, nasal screaming intertwines perfectly with the melodic black metal sound.

Second track Ildstemmer starts of with a quiet keyboard-piece before kicking into fifth gear with some classic black metal.

The third track Huldreland is a really slow and heavy tune, which features some spoken words from Dolk. The track has a strong dark ambience to it, but without loosing the black metal elements.

Bergtatt is a really amazing song, and features some great riffs and a some intense vocals. This makes for both a melodic and raw black metal song. This is definably one of the song I'm looking forward to hearing live!

Trolldomspagt another one of the "slower" songs, and like Huldreland it's really dark and heavy. The slower tempo fits the song and aids in creating the dark mood, that is present throughout the record.

Volvevers, is a great showcase for the Kampfar sound, and how they manage to rethink the black metal genre. The intro is a long bass driven piece, and you're almost 2 minutes into the song before Dolks voice kicks in.

Blitzwitch, the third song that starts with in a slower tempo before the drums kicks in. A solid track that follow the Kampfar tried-and-tested recipe, combining the strong melodic feel with the raw black metal voice and drumming.

Nattgang is one of the strongest track on the album. It's total pagan black metal dark overload - and don't get me wrong, this is as raw as they make 'em. Kampfar isn't going soft on this track, but somehow they managed to concentrate the lonely dark norwegian black metal sound in one single track - It's just awesome!

Altergang opens with a very beautiful piano piece, that sets the mood and lures you in. Before you know it, you are surrounded by intense drumming and black metal riffing. It is a great last track, and together with Nattgang closes the album in fine style. All in all Kampfars new album is a really strong one. Without any fillers, Kampfar proves they've got something great going for them, and I'm already looking forward to the next thing to come from their black minds. Zealots rejoice, get your ropes and daggers out, we are going to the sacrificial altar up in the norwegian mountains.