Thirty-five years into their existence, Oslo Black Metal legends TULUS return with their eighth full-length studio offering, Morbid Desires. This is another superbly catchy slab of Norwegian darkness, delivering lyrics, as always, written in old Norwegian by the hugely talented Hildr, wife of vocalist/guitarist Blodstrup, and encompassing dark-folklore themes.
The well-versed, nine-track Morbid Desires follows on from what TULUS achieved with their predecessor, 2023’s Fandens Kall and exceeds what they accomplished with that excellent release.
TULUS – Morbid Desires: black to the core Norwegian darkness returns.
One of the things I love about every subsequent TULUS release is their bold desire to be a little more adventurous with each album. But with the sound shaped by Blodstrup’s raw, rugged vocal delivery and Crowbel’s somewhat unique approach to his bass work, this adds a unique quality to their sound.
Opening with Salme II, this features clean vocals from Lars Erik Westby and follows on from the original saga, Salme from the Evil 1999 album. It is a farewell hymn for The Collector, a morbid and mysterious figure of the forest. Seemingly loved, his passing is mourned by the woodland creatures, reflecting on his demise and subsequent otherworldly existence.
It is very much in the same vein as the first Salme, but with a more sophisticated edge. The addition of a haunting keyboard opener adds a reflective edge, and the return of the Spanish guitar builds on the otherworldly atmosphere, with the haunting clean vocals building on that reflective, mystical atmosphere.
Lars Erik Westby has done a superb job here, balancing perfectly with the raw main vocals and Black Metal riffs. As a result, it is a wonderfully quirky and uniquely TULUS piece which, despite these seemingly un-Black Metal inclusions, is black to the core, pushing the boundaries whilst being an engaging and moving listen.
Skabb melds a slower-paced, rolling black groove balanced against acidic vocals with bursts of piano popping up across the duration, adding a quirky edge to the sound. I love how, in the final twenty seconds, the pace builds, and a bizarre and deranged twist in the sound manifests alongside a deranged scream.
The next piece, the self-titled single Tulus, apparently contains “the essence of the band, from the darkness and soot to the pale dawn, the murky fog, the cold in your sweat, and the noise in your heart.”
It certainly epitomises the TULUS sound, and it is a hugely engaging pitch-black offering based around a catchy, raw, rolling groove and offset by a grim vocal delivery. The high point is the superb bluesy leadwork midway, which really elevates the piece.
Kistesmed bursts forth with an intense drive as it opens, which is melded with pounding but sharp rhythms alongside the raw, protracted, and very dramatic vocal delivery. Some bleak, cold swathes are unleashed amidst the ebbing and building. So, no surprise that this grippingly sombre yet pounding beast’s title translates as Coffinsmith.
The next piece, Vanvidd, is as catchy as it gets. You cannot help but get caught up in the “madness” of its grippingly engaging rhythms, with vocals that have a slightly deranged edge to their delivery, and the soaring burst of mid-point lead work elevates the piece superbly.
Upping the excitement is Hedengangen, a punchy driver with rapid vocal delivery that twists and writhes as it progresses and delivers Thrashy leadwork early into the first half of the track. The pace drops slightly midway, but the punch remains, allowing the vocals to deliver superbly expressive protraction before resuming the previous driving pace.
Fossegrimens Vakt, which translates as The Watch Of The Waterfall, is a magnificent piece. It is a sultry builder, opening with extended clean reflective guitar work, with the equally reflective but dark melody building in layers. Then the vocals arrive, raw with sinister protractions and accompanied by a subtle but darker groove.
The second half leadwork is reflective, sublime and with a hint of darkness. This is a superbly expressive piece and one of my favourites across this excellent album.
Harbouring a dark and sinister rolling and repeating groove that grabs your attention from the offset is Skauånd, a massively engaging piece that rolls along effortlessly. This also brings to the fore, more so than other pieces, Crowbel’s superb bass lines. Another big hit with me, it is pure Black Metal excellence.
Final piece Sabbat is the album’s longest track at a whopping eight and a half minutes. Said to have been created as a tribute to Black Sabbath, it has definitely got a Sabbath groove in there, whilst still being very much TULUS.
They throw everything into this piece, cowbells, harmonica, flamboyant drum bursts and multiple drum solos, the like I have never heard from drummer Sarke before. With wistfully eerie swathes harbouring distant vocals, a few riffs definitely have a bit of a Tony Iommi feel to their delivery and a sexy burst of blues/rock lead work.
It might be a long piece, but it is a well-filled time frame. Sometimes, you hear a piece, and you can just sense the enjoyment felt by a band when performing it, and this is one of those pieces.
TULUS release Morbid Desires on 287 March 2026, via Darkness Shall Rise Productions. It is a superbly engaging offering from end to end, their best to date.
Pre-orders are available from here as a CD, cassette, vinyl, in a choice of four colours or digital download, so go and give your ears a treat.
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14th March 2025 Support: Cistvaenand Oakenthrone
Words : Oli Gonzalez
Almost two years since they last ventured south of the border to Manchester, Scotland’s Saor would return to the city. On that night in July 2024, they celebrated 10 years of their seminal album “Aura” with a full album play through at Rebellion. Since then, the band added “Amidst The Ruins” to that discography, an album which built on their firm atmospheric black metal roots and added even more depth and variety to their sound with the inclusion of the ethereal vocals of Ella and Nicolas’ guitar skills. This would be the first time the city of Manchester would bear witness to these tracks; how would those in attendance respond? Firstly though, two of the UK’s finest underground black metal acts to open things up…
Six weeks since Oakenthrone’s last appearance at Rebellion when they opened up what was essentially a death metal all dayer. Tonight though, they had homefield advantage as part of a black metal lineup, and looking a lot more comfortable. They’ve invested heavily in their guitar tones and offered an aesthetically pleasing take on atmospheric black metal. Whilst they maintained a swift pace throughout, they ventured into the realms of doom metal with slower yet no less impactful waves of immersive atmosphere. The minimal crowd interaction and some technical issues (guitarist cutting out a few times) seem like issues that will eventually fade as they gain more confidence and continue to cut their teeth in the live arena.
From the deepest depths of the South West, Cistvaen don’t come to Manchester often. Based on tonight, they should come more often as the appetite for their interpretation of black metal is certainly there within the city. A interpretation that blends the speed and crunch of classic heavy metal with the huge atmospheric soundscapes of black metal. As well as more complex and challenging song structures. Visually, they’re a lot more flamboyant than the genre generally dictates too, with front man Guy being the confident extraverted frontman we didn’t know we needed. Case in point when the band’s drummer suffered some minor technical difficulties, he managed to keep the crowd engaged when the set momentarily stopped. Though us Brits love it when things go belly up, and guy kept the crowd engaged and helped us all to see the funny side to it. The final two songs ‘Bleak House’ and ‘Time, The Mournful’ received huge ovations when they were announced. Who’d have thought they’d be so well received? More reason for Cistvaen to return to Manchester!
We’ve seen the name crop up on black metal lineups and festivals across the country…and for good reason. They’re bloody good at what they do!
Finally, our headline act. Slightly earlier than advertised but nobody was complaining one bit! It had been fairly spacious near the front but visibly busier by time Andy Marshall and co had taken to the stage.
“We will rise! From the ashes!”
Saor were deep into the “Amidst The Ruins” album cycle and the world had had over a year to become accustomed to this. Which is why many could be seen singing along to this ever powerful vocal line uttered by Andy from the album’s title track, a line he always roars with the utmost vigor and passion. Juxtaposing with his roars, Ella’s ethereal and enchanting cleaner vocals have become almost symbiotic with Saor’s sound now, and it’s hard to imagine the band without her. Every time she emerged from the shadows of the back of the stage to the front and center, she received a superstars welcome and huge ovation. Talk about star power! Some bands would opt for the lazy option of putting the tin whistles and uillean pipes through a backing track. There’s no substitute for the real thing though, as Saor have proved time and time again! They form part of an ever complex sound that ensured the crew behind Saor had well and truly earned their fees.
The set was dominated by songs from “Amidst The Ruins” though older material made it’s way into the song list. 50 minutes felt far too short of a set though, and when the band walked off stage, something wasn’t right. Unfinished. Not complete. Kind of like Slayer not playing ‘Reigning Blood’ or Judas priest omitting ‘Breaking The Law’. Though it wasn’t before Saor returned to the stage. Things felt right again. Then it began.
Their ‘Reigning Blood’. Their seminal hit. ‘Aura’.
If you’ve got time for only Saor song, listen to ‘Aura’. It sums up everything wonderful about them. Better yet, come and feel it live and in the flesh, an experience which far transcends the limitations of the digital realm and become immersed in wave after immersive wave of atmospheric black metal played by one of the true masters of the genre. This cannot be downloaded nor experienced digital. Saor are a band that need to be felt and experienced in person!
Photo Credit: Tom Atkin