Review by Fernando on December 12, 2021.

I and many others have gone on record in regards to the whole “death metal revival” or OSDM trend but it doesn’t seem to be going away, so we might as well enjoy the worthwhile bands anyway. With that said, Norwegian death metal is often overshadowed by both its blackened cousin and Swedish death metal, which is unfortunate since there’s a good number of decent bands. One such case is Haalbuaer, who have released their debut record Mortal Ones Scream In Horror through Caligari Records.

Haalbuaer is a trio who play straight to the jugular death metal with caveman riffs, deep growls, appropriately filthy gore hound lyrics and presentation, and a surprisingly punk edge without actually mixing genres. This is due to how the band keep their instrumentation fairly simple but not without effectiveness, and more surprisingly, they don’t over rely on blistering speed and pounding blast beats, which goes hand in hand with the slower parts which have tinges of sludge and doom, but without discarding or minimizing their death metal sound. It’s pure and distilled death metal but with surprising variety and sounding distinct from both the technical American style, and the more melodic Swedish style. Its not wholly original, as the band are clearly influenced by very early death metal veterans Autopsy and even the Danish scene popularized by Undergang, but with a very authentic raw Norwegian punk sensibilities and also some of the “keep it primitive” ethos of Darkthrone. And in just over 20 minutes the band gets in, get out and you have a very worthwhile experience.

That being said, while the band managed to craft a lean and mean record with much appreciated dynamics, the record isn’t perfect, as it’s still somewhat standard, especially when compared to other Norwegian acts. To give credit where it’s due, the band carved their own path with very simplistic and primitive instrumentation while effective as a whole, and being genuinely authentic. It's still a bit lacking, that’s not to say the band are amateurs, far from it, the actual music sounds really well and the raw and primitive sound fits the minimalist approach and execution. It’s just a criticism in terms of specifics but at the same time, Haalbuaer is a young and developing band; this is their debut record which in it of itself is a strong offering and with an equally strong first impression. There’s clearly room to grow, develop and refine their craft. The record is very good, but it can be better, and I mean that because there’s clear raw potential and promise which I’m sure the band will make a good use for and this is my overall criticism.

Haalbuaer are a hungry and promising act to see, and this record is just the beginning of their journey as they have the chops to make an even better one in the future.

Best tracks: 'Acts Of Morbid Perversion', 'Inhale The Nauseating Fumes', 'Bliss In Torment'

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Review by Carl on August 19, 2023.

Well, turns out Sebastian Bach and Skid Row were right, the youth has gone wild. After Wretched Inferno and Pissrot, I'm having another crew of young rapscallions on my hand, tearing my after-work peace and quiet to shreds once again. They are called Atonement, and they are hellbent to make sure you won't forget who they are!

Dealing in a vicious style of thrash/death metal that draws influences from both the first albums of German noiseniks such as Darkness, Kreator and Deathrow, as well as the earliest works by late 80's/early 90's death-ish thrashers like France's Massacra and Agressor, Swedens Merciless and Insanity (US). The bulk of the material speeds forth with thrashing force, interspersed with some stomping mid tempo parts and vicious shredding guitar leads, with the acidic croaking vocals giving the whole a black metal touch in the vein of late 80's Bathory. Listening to the album as a whole, I can't help but think of Atonement as being a somewhat more primitive version of Belgium's Slaughter Messiah, which certainly is no bad thing in my book. Here and there I even pick up on a few speed metal touches a la Agent Steel or Hallow's Eve in the savage riffing, which helps to make this album just that bit more varied. This is some vicious metal, right here!

The production fits the bill just perfectly. It's raw and powerful, energetic and aggressive, and it scratches that old school itch just right! Especially the natural drum sound is balm for the ears. The mix is balanced out well enough, not perfect, but just that little bit flawed enough to establish the needed retro feel that a release like this should emanate.

This is a fine blast of 80's metal worship done absolutely right, that's for sure! It had me thinking "where does this remind me of, again?" throughout, but you don't need proggy multi-layered suites or 10 minute sitar solo's in this style of retro rage, now do you? It does exactly what you want it to do, and everyone into honest and aggressive thrash steeped in 80's atmosphere is going to have a blast with this!

Rating: 8 out of 10