Black and death metal are often regarded as hostile to innovation, preferring instead to rely on staid ideas. A new alliance between Haar, the forefront of Scotland’s discordant avant-garde, and Ur-Draugr, a mighty, progressive Australian black metal force, proves that such orthodoxy is merely a border to be crossed by the curious. Perfectly merging the musical atmosphere and sinister evokations of both artists, this split release is powerfully supported by the artistic vision of Costin Chioreanu, who has truly captured the essence of Ur Draugr and Haar’s message in visual manifestation. Over the course of three dissonant, savage tracks, Haar explore the concept of Sehnsucht, the almost pathological yearning the human psyche has for faith, to believe in some sort of supernatural essence or meaning, to find significance or resonance amidst the chaos of mundane existence. Ur Draugr contribute with a single, esoteric track of nearly twenty minutes in length, which inducts the listener into a journey inspired by the philosophical traditions of Baudrillard and Nietzsche, Lovecraft's Dream Cycle, and Robert Chambers' ‘The King in Yellow’.
