American black metal, not much respect from the cvlt followers whom praise northern European countries for their art since it was the birthplace of the genre entirely. Well, Vattnet Viskar reverse this and open the eyes and minds of those who are grim and follow the bleakness and sorrow that is black metal. Lossless is an instant classic, their ability to craft such amazing and powerful music while being so young in their careers must be troubling to those who have been attempting to master this art form for sometime now. It’s brilliance shines on every track, never losing pace, never losing focus.

Nicholas’ screams on the album are magnificent and easily fit into the music. It’s the perfect blend of chaos and human emotion. Matt’s drumming on the album is highly respected as it’s not just blast beats throughout the entire album and it makes each tracks rhythmically perfect. The timing on the snare and the rolls/fills are just the shading the picture needs to make it all come together. Let’s not forget out fretboard masters: Nicholas and Chris on guitar with Alan on the low low thundering bass guitar. Seriously, I’ve listened to a lot of black metal over the years and the inclusion and sound from the bass guitar is respectfully amazing. Guitar work is a whirlwind series of riffs and chords brought forth from the north eastern winds. The music as a whole just whisks you away and takes you on a journey, it’s easy to get lost within the sounds being projected from the speakers. It’s haunting, it’s soothing, it’s absolutely amazing.

The album’s atmosphere is great, it sucks you in and let’s you create your own thought process. It could fill you with bitter hatred, it could make you enjoy life, it could make you utterly depressed or it can make you incredibly thankful about something. That’s the beauty of Vattnet Viskar’s music; yes this is black metal, the most grim musical genre in existence. However, Vattnet’s musical composition makes you feel other things, makes you relate the verse to a specific thing that is going on in life.  It’s something that only happens every once in awhile with me and a band. The ability to trigger many many emotions throughout the listening of the album. I respect that kind of song writing, I enjoy that kind of thought put into the album. Whether it was intentional or not, that’s what they do for me.

Lossless flows very well too, it’s almost like one long track. The transition from track to track is flawless and adds to the entire feel of the album. It keeps you on your toes, it keeps your interest. Vattnet Viskar have done an amazing job on this album and I only hope that they know how high of a bar they have set for themselves because it’s going to be hard to top this one. Lossless is definitely one of the best albums of 2012.

Pros: excellent black metal, song writing/structure and everything about Lossless is just great, Production is award winning

Cons: n/a

5 out of 5