It really is appropriate that my re-entry into the world of album reviews is marked by the release of Daudswiärk, the latest from German black metal entity Horn. Having long appreciated Nerrath’s work, the 10th studio album, marking the 20th anniversary of the project, was undoubtedly near the top of my list of anticipated 2024 releases. And it delivers. While leaning on all the qualities that have defined the Horn brand of black metal over the years, Daudswiärk reaches a level that feels more methodical, and most importantly, more fulfilling.

Right at the outset of opening track “Braud” we are greeted with a deliberate percussive cadence that wastes no time in setting a certain tone for Daudswiärk. One that is dense and filled with a sense of foreboding. Considering Horn’s stylistic history this feels notably straightforward, but the result is incredibly effective. We get the sense that there is more intent in this album. More focus. And while “Daudsaom” immediately follows that up with an absolutely blistering entry, it resolves quickly and decisively to a militaristic pattern that further drives this understanding home. There’s a willingness and ability to let these tracks evolve and routinely change direction, but the way in which they do still feels direct. At this point, it’s also apparent how bold and broad Horn sounds on Daudswiärk. A nod to the production here, the sound creates and fills space unlike any Horn album that came before it that I can recall. While those deliciously melodic leads, chanted choruses, folk-inspired interludes, and all of the other nuances that have always made Horn so captivating (dare I say “catchy”?) are very much present, it all just feels bigger and more powerful on Daudswiärk.

Speaking to that point, what originally pulled me into the Horn sound was precisely how it married the intensity of black metal with an atmosphere that at times felt, frankly, enjoyably light and airy, and completely without restraint. While the personality of Daudswiärk might be marked by a more somber tone overall, those looking for the meandering, experimental passages will find plenty of them, especially in the middle stages of the album. Both “Likentog” and “Broth” take you on quite a ride, but culminate in bellowing – but not necessarily clean – vocal passages and melodic leads that are way too easy to chant or bark along with. But it’s the interplay between the piercing, galloping, and atmospheric qualities of “Dagetostaon” that hits me the hardest, and captures everything that makes the Horn sound so impressive on this album. Plenty of ideas are thrust into this single track, but it builds, transitions, and resolves effortlessly, with not a single moment or passage wasted. A sense of purpose is present throughout the album, but it’s here the impact is felt most.

From there, the pace and intensity is appropriately maintained in the transition to the latter stages of Daudswiärk. It all reaches a fitting end with the complete earworm that is “Pyres” followed by the closing, almost defeated march of “Landrake”, two tracks that offer up some of the more straightforward concepts on the album, albeit in different ways, providing a sense of resolution. When it’s all said and done, Daudswiärk still holds all of the qualities that have made Horn such a fixture in my library, and I love it for that alone. This is undeniably a Horn record. Yet at the same time, the somber undertones within a more purposeful overall structure make the atmosphere that much more satisfying, elevating this album and this project to a new level.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
– cmb

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Daudswiärk is available on May 3 through Northern Silence Productions. For more information and to stay updated on Horn, visit the official Facebook page.