_ _______ _ ...:... _ _______ _ ___ / .:::::::::::. \ ___ | / .. (:::::::::::::) .. \ | | . .:::::.`:::::::::::'.:::::. . | | .::.. `:::.::':::`::.:::' ..::. | _ _______ | .::' ::::':::::`:::: `::. | _______ _ \\ | | :: `' ::':`:: `' :: | | // \ | | `:. .::' . `::. .:' | | / . | | .::::::..::::' ... `::::..::::::. | | . | | `:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::' | | .... | | `:' `::::: :: :: :::::' `:' | | .... | ' | : `. ': :: :: :: :: :` .' : | ` | |.....: . .......: :: :: :: :: : ...... . : ....| . ...................: : :: :: :: :: : : ................. . _____________:_____________ _____________:_____________ _ ___\` __ /_\` _______/_\` __ _/_\` /___ _ // __ / (/ ___/ (/ _ (/ /_______/\ _ _ /_________ ___________ ______/\ _ ______________/\__/_ _ \\\\\_________\__/\_________\__/\_____/\_____/\____________/f3!/// - -\-\-----------\__/----------\__/-------\_____/---------------/-/- - - -------------------: : :. ..:: :: . :------------------ - : : :......: :: :` ': :: : .....: : : ___ _ | | : ` ' : | | _ ___ _\---------- : | -------- : B E R C : -------- | : ----------/_ /_\ . : . ..:.. ..:.. . : . /_\ /// . . : : . . \\\ /: :\ /:: Artist :: Sahg ::\ :: Album :: Delusions of Grandeur :: :: Year :: 2013 :: :: __ _ _ __ :: -:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:- :: \ / :: :: . Genre :: Metal Source :: CDDA . :: :: Label :: Indie Recordings R.date :: 25.10.2013 :: _::__ Cat.nr. :: INDIE098CD Size :: 92,0 MB __::_ ::// \\:: ::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\:: :: :: /: Encoder :: LAME 3.98.4 -V0 :\ ..: Bitrate :: avg. 276kbps : . . Quality :: 44,1kHz/Joint-Stereo . . . Website :: http://www.sahg.no/ __ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __ .\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////. +/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+ /: . : : . :\ /:: ::\ :: 01. Slip Off the Edge of the Universe 05:55 :: :: 02. Blizzardborne 05:37 :: :: 03. Firechild 05:11 :: :: 04. Walls of Delusion 06:28 :: :: 05. Ether 05:10 :: :: 06. Then Wakens the Beast 04:43 :: :: 07. Odium Delirium 02:33 :: :: 08. Sleeper's Gate to the Galaxy 11:18 :: :: ------- :: .. >> 46:55 min .. __ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __ .\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////. +/ -\------- | | ----\ release notes /---- | | -------/- \+ /: . : : . :\ /:: ::\ :: :: :: Though the band name may suggest otherwise, Sahg have not :: :: one little bit in common with extreme metal. Sure, many :: :: will merely discover that the band's country of origin is :: :: none other than Norway and think to themselves "CVLT BLACK :: :: METAL", but one listen to "Slip off the edge of the :: :: universe", the opening track to the band's latest album :: :: Delusions of grandeur, and those first-glance genre :: :: boundaries will be quashed immediately. :: :: :: :: Sahg have been active for nine years, with four albums to :: :: their name, yet their presence in the world of rock or :: :: indeed metal doesn't seem to have been recognized by many. :: :: No surprise then, given the band's choice of content for :: :: the majority of their songs. That is, the feeling of :: :: floating alone within the outer realms of space, the idea :: :: of falling into deep unconsciousness and the human desire :: :: to learn as much as one man's frail mind can take. :: :: Conceptually speaking, Delusions of grandeur is based :: :: solely around the life of a man who, day by day, becomes :: :: more and more powerful until he is given the title of :: :: "almighty ruler of the universe", eventually becoming so :: :: self-confident that he "falls through space to his death". :: :: As disconcerting as this sounds, the band have certainly :: :: done their homework. They cite Stanley Kubrick's :: :: masterpiece 2001: A space odyssey as a direct influence, :: :: and it does seem to play a vital role in the album's :: :: overall message. With Delusions of grandeur, Sahg have :: :: managed to create a sound that could be mistaken for the :: :: soundtrack to that film. That's NOT an exaggeration. :: :: :: :: However, where the music is concerned, some are bound to be :: :: put off, whilst others may fall in love immediately. The :: :: main problem (and let's face it, the only problem) here is :: :: that a few of the songs constantly bring to mind Crack the :: :: Skye-era Mastodon. And this is the album we're talking :: :: about, not the song. As rich and vast in sound as songs :: :: such as "Blizzardborne" or "Then wakens the beast" are, you :: :: just can't shake off the leftover sounds still ringing in :: :: your mind from Mastodon's past. It's so uncanny it almost :: :: seems like Mastodon are taking over at times, but it isn't :: :: too much of a bother, since Sahg have naturally crafted :: :: their own unique style without any help. :: :: :: :: What really helps Delusions of grandeur is the way in which :: :: each song changes its mood almost immediately, whilst still :: :: keeping the wonderful musical flow. Take "Walls of :: :: delusion" and "Ether" for example. Whereas the former owes :: :: a lot to the heavier side of 70s metal with its massive :: :: grooves and bluesy hooks, the latter revels in mesmerizing, :: :: spacey sounds against endless waves of fuzzy guitars and :: :: booming bass-lines, something which inevitably wouldn't :: :: sound out of place on any of Hawkwind's first five albums. :: :: There's also the last two songs, arguably the pinnacle of :: :: Sahg's level of songwriting and talent. "Odium delerium", :: :: the album's only instrumental jam, begins to sound as if :: :: something's missing-and if you're thinking vocals, then :: :: you're definitely right. Yet within a minute of :: :: electrifying instrumentation which constantly thrills the :: :: casual listener with its warm, upbeat vibes, everything :: :: seems to fit together nicely, producing an energetic :: :: performance which never actually ends until the opening :: :: moments its successor. "Sleeper's gate to the galaxy" is :: :: simply where every aspect of the band's talent fuses into :: :: one in the form of an epic 11-minute opus, serving as the :: :: centrepiece of Delusions of grandeur. Although it takes a :: :: fair few minutes to truly get going, the song very rarely :: :: lets up on musical quality. With his enchanting vocals, :: :: Olav slowly but surely creates a multitude of feelings, :: :: crafted within head-scratching albeit eventually :: :: comprehensible lyrics, and together with the exquisite :: :: technicality of the rhythm section it all seems as if it's :: :: going to be a lengthy ballad, before the vocalist shows his :: :: metallic edge and roars through a wall of loud, distorted :: :: sound . It echoes everything that the band may or may not :: :: have succeeded with in the past, and certainly resurrects :: :: the mind-blowing intensity which is prominent on other :: :: similarly enigmatic songs such as "Firechild" and "Ether". :: :: :: :: There's nothing more to say about Delusions of grandeur, :: :: except that it is most definitely the career-defining album :: :: Sahg wanted to create ever since their inception in 2004. :: :: It has to be listened to carefully-in fact, reading along :: :: to the lyrics will help you understand the band's sole :: :: intention when creating Delusions of grandeur-but there is :: :: certainly a special something here which may convert you to :: :: music of a more forward-thinking style. :: :: :: :: . _ _ . :: \: :. \\ ___________ . ___________ // .: :/ __\____ :: ____ ___\ _ / BERC : 2013 \ _ /___ ____ :: ____/__ \\\f3! :: \\\ __ _/_________i_________\ /___/ /// :: cRO/// \ :: :\-\___________\_ ___ / _ _/___________/-/: :: / :: | . . _ _ _/ __/ . \_ _ _ . . | :: : :::::::: | | \\\\\/ _______\____|\ \///// | | :::::::: : :: | | -\-\/____/-------------\____\/-/- | | :: :: | | \ :|: / | | :: : : | . ` ::: ' . | : : . . | : ::: : | . . | :::....:::....::: | : ::::::::::::::::: : . :::''``:::''``::: . : ::: : . ::: . .:. :