Review by Felix on February 3, 2021.

You don't have to be an expert in Finnish black metal to have an idea of roughly what Ymir's debut sounds like. If you have heard an album by Odiosior, Ordinance or Malum once, it only takes a small mental transfer to imagine what style Ymir might play. Of course, there is a cold atmosphere, which is primarily based on icy guitar lines. The almost nine-minute opener invites the listener to take an extensive bath in the ice bucket. Sombrely looming keyboards darken the sky even more. In their best moments, their use is reminiscent of the early masterpieces of the Emperor, to build a bridge from Finland to the west. No question, dark grey clouds are gathering in the sky, driven across the land by a merciless wind. But when a band takes the tiny period of 23 years to record their debut, you can expect at least a small whirlwind.

Excuse me for a moment, someone is raising the hand back there and wants to ask something. What do you want to know? Whether the music on the self-titled album is original? How such questions bore me. The answer is no. Does anyone want to ask a more intelligent question now? Do I mean that black metal has to sound original? This question is better, even if the answer is the same as before. No, black metal doesn't have to win an originality award. But it must have a cruel note, which in Ymir's case is achieved by the fervent screaming and nagging. While some instrumental sections may enjoy a more or less smooth, relatively clearly pronounced melody, Lord Sargofagian's voice is a constant reminder that we are not at a children's birthday party here. In addition, the material has a good measure of that typically Finnish, melancholic heaviness that can long since be considered a black metal trademark.

The appearance of typical genre elements is accompanied by the complete absence of external approaches. This does not lead to the highest level of listening pleasure all the time, so 'Winterstorms' could well have been shortened from six to four minutes. The track does not lack coherence, but it does miss enough good ideas and a higher degree of aggression. The appropriate production, which has that famously creepy, dense touch, is of little help here. Besides the clanging guitars, neither drums nor vocals come up short, so more or less everything fits here. Be that as it may, no sound engineer in the world can animate a relatively lame composition to run. But I don't want to spend too much time on the minor flaws of the album, because overall it is unquestionably another document of Finnish quality metal. 'Silvery Howling' and 'Resurrection of the Pagan Fire' are the names of only two tracks that convince with their fast snare, their abysmal harmonies and their very solid basic substance. It is not only the experts who are happy about such tones from Finland.

Rating: 7.6 out of 10

Review by Fernando on February 3, 2021.

Over the years there have been a large number of different approaches in music and lyrics within black metal with equally mixed results. One of such styles is the more pagan side of black metal, bands of what’s described as “pagan black metal” tend to focus on exactly that, pre-Christian pagan beliefs and musically incorporate more folkish and even epic elements, and of course the influence of Bathory in that area can’t be understated. In 2020, the controversial label Werewolf Records in allegiance with Lord Sargofagian of Baptism fame and his brother Vrasjarn brought the debut self-titled full-length album of the two brother’s long dormant pagan black metal project, Ymir.

It's interesting how Ymir as a project existed for over two decades and released just two demos, however given how both Lord Sargofagian and Vrasjarn are very prolific with their other endeavors, it's not entirely unreasonable to see why this project slumbered for so long.

Those familiar with Sargofagian’s main band Baptism would feel an instant familiarity listening to this record as it hearkens to some musical elements to Baptism, primarily the melancholic melodies and aggressive drumming, however this project has a major difference with that band, namely the atmosphere and overall execution of the music. The sorrowful melodies in Ymir have various tinges of folkloric musicality, but what’s interesting is how there’s no overly folky instrumentation beyond a very subdued keyboard for added effect in some songs. Usually pagan black metal bands tend to go ham on bringing traditional instruments to pay tribute to their pagan ancestors, in here it isn’t the case, guitars, bass, drums, shrieking vocals, and already mentioned, very subtle keyboards. The actual music is also very raw and aggressive, leaning more towards classic Norwegian style black metal in the vein of early Enslaved and Taake, albeit with the trademark Finnish melodicism most fans of that regional style would associate to bands like Baptism. But the key difference is in the atmosphere. The music’s overall feel as a whole is one of a cold and bitter winter, a frozen desolate wasteland, and the effectiveness of the execution lies in how the band used a minimalist and primitive approach to create such a grand and sprawling sound with a balanced focus on both aggression and atmosphere. It's actually impressive how the band achieved such an epic sounding album with the most basic of instrumentation and in a surprisingly short amount of time. Just over thirty minutes of music, a testament to the ethos of black metal that Fenriz of Darkthrone always talks about.

That being said, while I can safely give this album high praise for being so innovative to achieve its ambitious sound, taken as a whole this record is not that different from other older black metal or pagan metal records. I can certainly respect the “no BS” approach and adherence to the spirit of the subgenre, but as it is, this is an album that’s kinda stuck in the late 90’s sound of black metal, which is made evident by the fact that this band was dormant for so long and no other meaningful released beyond two demos that at this point can barely be found online if at all. While it is a legitimately good album with memorable moments and noteworthy aspects in the musical execution, it just feels like a weathered tree in a frostbitten forest, it can stand out in sheer size and age but the same snow covers all the woodlands.

Best tracks: 'Pagan Mysticism', 'Ymir', 'Resurrection of the Pagan Fire'

Rating: 7.6 out of 10

Review by Faithless on September 27, 2020.

As the “dominant” species in the third rock from the sun, we humans have been in a constant struggle between keeping civilization going and creating our demise. Empires have risen and fallen and our current society is speedily going towards extinction. We are a zero-type civilization and the horizon looks blurry each day, leading us to be the virus, the cancer of earth. After the album The Phobos and Deimos Suite Serocs strikes once again the technical brutal death metal scene with an EP called Vore. This EP deals with the theme of humans as devourers of everything on the planet and us causing our obsolescence.

Serocs' sound hasn't changed much from their previous effort. The band keeps up with the blasting and technical brutality in the drums, fast and intricate riffing, techy bass lines, and horrendous guttural vocals. In my view, this EP serves as a way to perhaps include songs that were not into The Phobos and Deimos Suite for x or y reason and also as a teaser for what's to come shortly. The production, writing style, and instrumental attack is kind of similar to previous efforts. The only thing I can say changed a bit was that the guitar passages are more melodic than before. Of course, without sacrificing aggression and technique.

Vore is composed of 7 tracks in which 2 previous versions of their 2011 demo were included ('Nihilus' and 'Anthropic'). I have to say that the new versions of the demo songs are sounding brutal enough to justify their existence in this EP. By the way, those are instrumental versions, no vocal parts included. Anyways, let's get into the other 5 songs. The EP opens with 'Anthropic', this track starts with a short mysterious intro that quickly builds into the main riff, which is rhythmic, melodic, and catchy enough to keep your headbanging. The bass is prominent and pulsating, something that most of the time doesn't happen in technical brutal death metal bands. The bass usually gets buried into the mix and is just relegated to breakdowns and slow parts. Speaking of slow parts, there is only one moment to get your breath back in this EP; 'Shallow Vaults' is a brief instrumental that bridges 'Building a Shrine Upon Vanishing Sands' and 'The Temple of Knowledge'. Apart from the small interlude, you will only find frantic blast beats and complex guitar sections.

As I already mentioned, Vore is a demonstration of the inhuman technique in all the instruments, and is not about showing off how fast they are or how brutal. It is about how coherent and cohesive you are with the concept you're displaying. 'To Self-Devour' closes the butchery consistently, keeping up with the melodic guitar moments along with the EP as well as with the technical parts shown in the bass and drums. This is by far my favorite song of Vore due to the leitmotif drawn in the guitars that makes that track catchy, labyrinthine, and aggressive. A perfect closure.

Concluding with my review, I just want to say that Serocs has been a very consistent act since the beginning of their career. Throwing competent material into the scene, this band takes their time to release smart music into a sub-genre that tends to be repetitive and sometimes dumb. So folks, it is time to self-devour your brains and spin Vore, a very interesting and decent piece of technical brutal death metal from the band Serocs.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10