By Norse Music releases Orcus, the debut full-length album by Norwegian Progressive Metal instrumental band, Drott. Arve Isdal (Enslaved), Ivar Thormodsaeter (Ulver), and Matias Monsen make up the unit, which was established in 2020. A self-titled EP was released in March 2021. The band is inspired by forces of nature, superstition and spirituality – and explores light within darkness through their music...

It’s worth noting the story told through the album’s soundscapes: Called by 'The Lure', Drott is flung into the maze of 'Cerdroia', descending deeper and closer to the realms of Orcus. As darkness grows, Drott grasps at every beam of light possible at 'Katabasis', before realising the true nature of the journey. As Drott faces the sad and gloomy shore called 'The Strait', contours of the 'Psychopomp' emerge from the shadows, he is the guide of souls in the passage between the living and the dead. So begins the journey into Orcus. 'By the Lunar Lake' recalls the echoes from the past. A feeling of tranquility and connection with the living, unaware of 'the Marauders', 'Grey Gull' ascends, restoring tranquility and strength before Drott’s final descent through 'The Arch of Gloom'. There awaits 'Orcus', the judge, the punisher and purificator. The Lord of the Underworld.

The complexity of this story may split idle curiosity seekers into the two camps: "What a load of convoluted nonsense" and "That sounds pretty cool". I must admit that I’m intrigued. But what about the music? I hear you ask. 'The Lure' opens the proceedings with atmospheric Pagan woodwind sounds which are joined by a simple repeating guitar sequence. The shrieking just begins to become uncomfortable when we segue into 'Cerdroia', a guitar and drums pairing made annoying by that whining rising and falling. 'Katabasis' turns things around with a solid Rock chugging driving through the unconvincing sorrowful cello-like meandering. The string samples would be nothing here without the guitar, bass and drums which possess real substance and change their stance every so often to keep it fresh. This is the only one thus far that has carried any sort of melodic structure. It doesn’t really go anywhere, but is nevertheless compelling, inducing the listener to invest in its journey.

'The Strait' has basic Electronica and an outré ghostly, almost tentative feel. 'Psychopomp' sinks into a dark and eerie environment, with feelings of trepidation and electric fear. It is very much a soundtrack piece, rather than in any sense music. It’s grave and unsettling; a journey into the unknown, lost and directionless. 'By the Lunar Lake', in contrast, is an almost stereotyped re-enactment of a Chinese or Japanese setting from hundreds of years ago, using simple percussion, sampled strings and a whistled theme. 'The Marauders' ups the percussion stakes and surrounds it with periphery sound effects and a hesitant stomping background, This becomes more insistent and sinister with more of an all-encompassing band sound of clashing themes and Electronica. 'Grey Gull' is more retrospective, utilising a high-pitched guitar of slow and melancholy melody which does its best to be at odds with its conglomerate. 'Arch of Gloom' begins much more like a music track reminiscent of a Kevin Rodriguez film, with Mexican or Spanish influences. It has a moderate, smooth pace, and comes across as a jam with purpose. It’s simple but very effective; both raucous and melodic. This comes as a definite breath of fresh air and is easily the best track on the album.

We sign-off with the title track, 'Orcus'. It takes a while to get going, but once it does it follows the basics of the previous piece but with much more of a grand scope, attempting to encompass everything which has passed before with more of a grand opus. It’s mainly a repeated sequence that chugs along like a long-distance cyberpunk freight train. It’s a strong finish to a weirdly assembled collection of tracks, most of which are soundscapes. Indeed, had this been a film or TV soundtrack I would undoubtedly have scored it higher. You can easily imagine this adorning a post-apocalyptic film setting, or a narrated audio story in the vein of Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds album from the 1970s. However, this is a music album from a band, and standalone music sometimes demands more significance. The Drott story relayed earlier in this review is all well and good, but there is no indication of this discerned from the music.

5

Ty Power