Over the course of Borknagar's three full length albums, Borknagar (1996); The Olden Domain (1997); and The Archaic Course (1998), they have become not only one of Norway's most prominent acts, but also made a name for themselves in the Metal scene as masters of Blackend Epic Metal. The atmospheres this band creates is spellbinding, giving the listener a feeling of standing upon the highest mountain and looking over vast, barren fields of desolation, only to gaze towards the sky and send your soul through spiraling dimensions...

Quintessence is Borknagar's fourth opus, and sees guitarist/primary songwriter/band founder Oystien G. Brun along with vocalist Simen Hestnaes (a.k.a. I.C.S. Vortex) and second guitarist Jens Ryland return with new drummer Aesgir Mickelson (Spiral Architect) replacing Grim, who departed after The Archaic Course and sadly put an end to his own existence, and keyboardist Lard A. Nedland (Solefald) replacing Enslaved's Ivar Bjornson. Former bass player Kai also departed after The Archaic Course. so all bass was played by Simen on this recording.

The two new members make rather striking impressions here, with Lars' keyboards adding various different shades of color to the songs, bringing a celestial atmosphere to Quintessence. His playing takes the Borknagar sound to a higher dimension, while Asgeir proves himself to be one of the most talented srummers in the scene with a completely breathtaking performance. His attention to detail and cymbal work is amazing. It is the masterful work that Asgeir creates behind the kit that is the most impressive instrumental performance on this album.

...However, it is the incredible vocal performance of Simen that is the highlight and peak performance here. Having impressed with his performance on The Archaic Course, he takes it to an even higher level this time around, soaring with passionate, utterly emotional clean vocals to his vicious Black Metal screams of vengeance...Simen is a vocal God! The most impressive displays are to be found in "The Presence Is Ominous" which sees the clean and harsh vocals layered together and the results are very effective. This song is easily the best the band has written to date, with its swirling riffs and incredibly effective vocal phrasings. Simen's amazing vocal performance on this album makes Garm's masterful work on The Olden Domain seem like a distant memory.

Overall, Quintessence combines the primal, bombastic Black Metal of the debut, the epic/majestic atmosphere of The Olden Domain and the progressive aspects of The Archaic Course to create one of the most spellbinding and enjoyable albums I've heard in quite a while. Highlights are the aforementioned "The Presence Is Ominous", "Ruins Of The Future", the beautiful "Colossus" and album closer "Revolt". By portraying all the best aspects of the three previous albums and opening doors to a few new musical dimensions, Borknagar gives a nod to the past with an eye to the future and have released what so far is my choice for best album of 2000.

This review is credited to:
palewake