SOL NIGER WITHIN

"Sol Niger Within" is the debut full-length studio album by Swedish music artist Fredrik Thordendal. The album was released under the Fredrik Thordendal's Special Defects monicker and it was released through five different labels on different markets. The Avalon Records version, which was released in Japan features one 43:34 minutes long track, while all other versions feature the long track broken down into 29 shorter songs. Thordendal is known as the guitarist and one of the founders of Swedish technical metal act Meshuggah and "Sol Niger Within" bridges the gab between Meshuggah´s second- and third full-length studio albums "Destroy, Erase, Improve" (1996) and "Chaosphere" (1998).

Those familiar with the two mentioned Meshuggah albums won´t be surprised with the increasingly angular odd-metered heavy riffs and rhythms, Holdsworthian jazz/fusion guitar solos, and the generally abstract almost avant-garde futuristic take on playing heavy music. It´s the evolution you also hear from the still thrash/groove metal oriented "Destroy, Erase, Improve" to "Chaosphere". The vocals on "Sol Niger Within" are some sort of spoken raw snarling and there are also some spoken word sections featured on the album. Guitars, bass, synths, and vocals are predominantly performed by Thordendal (although the album features quite a few guest performances), while the drums are performed by Swedish drummer Morgan Ågren (Karmakanic, Casualties of Cool, Kaipa, Devin Townsend).

Some tracks feature recognisable structures and some repetition, while others feel very abstract and linear, and "Sol Niger Within" definitely isn´t an easily accessible listen. So, if you find Meshuggah a hard listen, this will probably prove an even more challenging and maybe even difficult listening experience. Even Meshuggah fans may find this a bit too abstract, but when that is said "Sol Niger Within" features a lot of interesting songwriting ideas and moments, and while it ´s certainly an avant-garde metal release, it´s not completely inpenetrable.

As an artistic statement "Sol Niger Within" arguably shows the genius and uniqueness of Thordendal and it´s overall an entertaining, highly experimental, and intriguing listen. As the album often lacks a solid structure or something for the listener to hold on to for very long, it´s as described above a pretty difficult listen though, and as a result it´s probably only an album for a select few open-minded listeners. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

(Originally posted on Metal Music Archives).

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