Besides offering a nicely done layout with an appealing black on black printing and a sleeve carrying the embossed logo of the Norwegian band, musically you will find nothing but quality on this debut release as well! Although this is still a demo CD the fact it was released on a "real" label speaks for itself, DROTTNAR’s blend of raw Black Metal, complex technical elements, diversified rhythmn patterns ranging from driving speed to rather rocking section plus a few moody violin parts come across transparent sounding and powerfully produced. Personally the quintet is a little too quirky for my taste, but whoever is interested in Black Metal-based music escaping the boundaries of the genre to explore and weave other musical spheres into this style should keep this band in mind. DROTTNAR consist of experienced musicians with a good sense for both traditional straightness and surprising intricate eruptions. What I consider to be very positive about this band is that they seem to know when to stop breaking open standard rhythm schemes and when to return to them, DROTTNAR do not get lost in their versatile arrangements and do not ruin the dark feeling by technical extravaganzas. If you are into individual sounding Black Metal you might like to try out this band… Links of interest: www.drottnar.com, www.momentumscandinavia.com