Artist: Draugheimen
Country: Unknown
Label: Bloodthorn
Formats: Demo Tape
Year: 2024
The so far mostly very mysterious Draugheimen, whose background and origins are currently shrouded in mists, unleashed a fine self-titled demo on humanity at the end of last year. Although, a minuscule part of it, as ‘Draugheimen’ has only been made available in 15 copies via the almost equally obscure Bloodthorn label.
And although the person behind this band seems to like to be in the shadows, he surrounds himself with some well-known figures from the international Black Metal community. The logo was designed by Swartadauþuz (Bekëth Nexëhmü, Gnipahålan, Greve, Trolldom, Tyranni and countless others) and the mix and master were the responsibility of Incubare (Collier d’Ombre and Ablazen Winds). But where Swartadauþuz in particular is known for his one dimensional qualities and often generic music, Draugheimen certainly is a very interesting new band.
With almost half an hour, this demo not only has the playing time of a full-length album, it has the potential too. Yet, admittedly, the first half of ‘Draugheimen’ is by far the most interesting and offers quite an intense experience. With the moody riffs, dense production and the dreamy keyboards this is pretty much as close as you can get to Dimmu Borgir’s debut album. But it is not only ‘For All Tid’ that you will be reminded of, also Gehenna and to a lesser extent also Forgotten Woods. In short, it is a modest and melodic mid-90’s affair that also breathes a good Pagan atmosphere that fits perfectly to its artwork. To add some extra emphasis to their pagan background, at the end of the last song we briefly hear some clean vocals that do sound a bit like Isengard. That last song is worth mentioning anyway, with a more Heavy Metal texture and some clearer, almost Hellhammer-like riffs, this offers an interesting base for that Pagan infusion.
It might not be the most original or best demo you’ll hear, but ‘Draugheimen’ certainly is worth checking out if you have a knack for well-played mid-90’s Black Metal, very much aligned with the Norwegian flavour of Pagan Black Metal. A run of only 15 copies of a demo might be a bit small, but if you happen to have missed this initial Bloodthorn release, you’ll have another chance when Medieval Prophecy Records will reissue it somewhere in the upcoming months.
