Vesen

Ugly

Art Music 2005

I am a huge fan of the thrash revival that is going on in Norway these days with Audiopain, Nocturnal Breed, and Aura Noir leading the way.  Vesen is another offspring of this continually evolving scene.  They differ a little from their contemporaries by have a lot more variety to their musical compositions.  On Ugly we have a very diverse bag to choose from.  There are traditional in your face black thrash attacks in such tracks as See you in Hell, Taste my Disease, and the title track.  Then there are the tracks This Harmony and Collapse which make me think of something more like what I would expect from modern Enslaved with some traditional metal and some progressive explorations.  This showcases their talent but also diffuses some of the focus of the album.  I think the overall impact of the album would be much stronger if the material wasn't so diverse.  But that is a minor complaint as all the material is strong when viewed on its own.  A lot of guest appearances are made on Ugly but the most immediately profound and distinguishable one to me is Stian Krabol with his traditional rock solos which add a layer of emotional and guilty pleasure to the four songs featuring featuring his handywork.  Also Vesen distinguishes themselves from their peers by opting for an accoustic intro.  Kim Solve is used for the cover art and once again proves why he is in such great demand.  Fias Co. is the studio run by the guys from Audiopain and Vesen used it with good effects.  The guitars are solid with a nice bit of crunch.  Vesen is poised to step up to the level of their more well known contemporaries and could help fill the void left by Aura Noir due to the injury of Aggressor.  I just think less diverse set of material to focus on would help achieve this goal rather than mildly confusing the listener.