Sarke is a feisty one. Created by the man himself and fueled by Nocturno Culto of Darkthrone, this outfit is one of the quirkiest the RMR crew encountered in this metal multiverse of ours. And that means we’re all ears whenever the band lets loose with a new record.
Allsighr didn’t talk to us at first. But in time, the quirky ways of Sarke got into our metal bloodstream and took hold like one of those sneaky viruses. And Nocturno snarkily croaking ‘allsighr’ a felt every five seconds made it bounce about our mutual heads for way too long.1
Endo Feight is no different. The skeletal structures of the record will have you scratch your head where this is all heading. The vocalist’s metal recitals in his grumpily gritty vox might even lose the band a fair number of fans. And there is indeed not much loving attention baked into the vocal performance, it’s all on an even keel and pushed straight into your face. Which – I guess – is Sarke‘s (the man) main strategy.
Phantom Recluse starts the record off with some true Sorcerer vibes. Riffs that are as gothically melancholic as they powerfully bounce off your ribcage with a vengeance. And straight from the beginning, the drum work displays that smooth groove only AC/DC‘s Phil Rudd is was capable of to date. And this made this reviewer check if the old ‘n’ grumpy Australian menace didn’t quietly join these Norwegians. Funny enough, Cato Bækkevold wasn’t present for Endo Feight on drums. Instead, Sarke himself took on drum duties to astonishing effects.
And yet again, the RMR crew got sucked into Thomas Berglie‘s game only after a few listens. Sarke is very much an acquired taste. But who can resist the prevalent smooth groove on this record for too long? Right, nobody. I Destroyed The Cosmos, for instance, is one of those fascinating tracks. Ambient parts, hard metal, and a flow that just makes you sail along the ebb and flow of a juicily arranged track.
Endo Feight also ain’t stingy with its influences. Heavy and Black Metal, references to Thrash Metal, it’s all there. And there’s an added fair share of doom ‘n’ gloom on display. To the point that the band often loses itself in haunting excursions into the lands of tribulation. Boy, Sarke even ventures out on those fiendishly succulent grounds Black Sabbath once occupied, complete with the devil’s tritone. Or some version of it, at least. So, head over to Macabre Embrace and tell me if you’re not missing Ozzy’s trademark whine some. Sarke even included their very own version of the terrible bell the sabbath folks are famous for.
So, what’s the verdict this time? Well, Endo Feight won’t deliver any sea change to your music machines. The record ain’t a copy of its predecessor but it is – for sure – a true sibling. If anything, the frantic parts left the building and some majestic mid-tempo flow moved in instead. The RMR crew found some huge cathedral arrangements like Phantom Recluse that somehow sound like something Dracula would play in his cold castle during lonely hours. But the pensive and even experimental parts such as the excellent Lost had a tremendous impact on the occupants of the RMR office tower. And it’s indeed the haunted ghosts of the mighty Avantgarde that made us fall in love with the record.
Endo Feight is living proof that experimentation with frugal and somber Post Black Metal can yield great results. The record’s disturbing and haunting, it’s heavy and diabolical, it’s full of gothic doom and haunting melancholy. But it is also an irresistible work of art that makes it difficult to navigate away from. In other words, Sarke yet again stripped all the lo-fi shenanigans and growls away from the metal and emerged with a skeletal record that feels like dwelling in another mystical universe. The one where the undead fester in primordial combat in a half-world they cannot understand. Because everything is lost and grey, and you can’t fight your way out of that bottomless abyss.
Record Rating: 7/10 | Label: Soulseller Records | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 21 June 2024
- ALLSIGHRRR!!! I still get a kick out of this. – Ed.-↩