Død Kretser is the new album by shadowy solo black metal artist SHROUDED ELK, featuring their first new music in over 4 years and first “official” album after a demo and 2 singles.
Roughly translated to “death circuits” in Norweigan, Død Kretser is a scathing 6-track hymnal preaching the evils of computing and the destructive consequences of embracing its power. Lyrically, SHROUDED ELK have never been shy about their misanthropic visions of humanity’s end and the desire for nature’s reign. Død Kretser similarly revels in an inevitable cataclysm, but is delivered as poetic warnings detailing the stages in the rise and fall of humanity’s digital empire – the birth of circuitry, the language of code, the infrastructure of networks, the poison of data, the lust for power, and the ruin that follows.
Sonically, it is a caustic evolution of SHROUDED ELK’s sound, employing a dense, consciously unpleasant mix of hand-made analog fuzz & sub-octave pedals coupled with overblown harpsichord permeating the background voids. From epic exultations to ill-intentioned omens, intensely dissonant riffing grinds above bit-crushed basslines simulating chaotic voltage arcs and broken connections. In the background, an unchanging wall of percussion serves merely as a vessel for providing intensity at an unrelenting pace.
Though it’s a short endeavor clocking in at just over 12 minutes, Død Kretser is a potent manifestation of SHROUDED ELK’s principles, embracing the abrasive power of machinery and using it as a weapon against its creators.
The minidisc edition contains an exclusive additional version of the album – the DRONE HYMNS. This collection removes the drums and vocals and slows the pace greatly, serving as a surreal reinterpretation that elevates the intricacies and insane timbral depth of the tracks.
Packaging
- Transparent minidisc with black & white label
- Double-sided multipanel black & white insert
- Clear hardshell jewel case
- Black PCB with white screen-printed art
- Jewel case soldered to board with black wires
- Limited Edition of 50
Tracklisting
01 - 00:30 - Circuit Zero
02 - 02:49 - Dark Code
03 - 01:48 - Frayed Wires
04 - 02:09 - Data Fragments
05 - 02:19 - Voltage Overload
06 - 02:44 - Magnetic Dust
07 - 00:41 - Circuit Zero (Drøne)
08 - 03:49 - Dark Code (Drøne)
09 - 02:28 - Frayed Wires (Drøne)
10 - 02:53 - Data Fragments (Drøne)
11 - 03:10 - Voltage Overload (Drøne)
12 - 03:45 - Magnetic Dust (Drøne)