Utumno play typical Norwegian black metal, and to me, that's not a bad thing. Take one part Emperor and one part Darkthrone, remove just a tad bit of the talent from both and you have Utumno. Not that Utumno are bad, they're not, they just aren't as grandiose as Emperor and not as harsh as Darkthrone and not as inventive as either. Riffs are fast and minimal, drums are handled well, and vocals are, of course, raspy. Keys are present, but they are mixed way in the back and are barely audible. Compositions are dark and, while not overly original, are satisfying.

© 2000 j. mcintyre