True to black metal’s interest in the archaic and what it can reveal to the onlookers of the present, Ysyry Mollvün turn to the distant past (and the remnants that are still left of it), which, given their geographical location, leads the argentinian band to the indigenous peoples of South America and their beliefs (their name means “river” (“ysyry”) in the guaraní language and “blood” (“mollvün”) in the Selk’nam’s language), a subject that by itself grants them an aura of mystery that naturally accompanies an insular and practically extinct mode of existence where the divine and the magical are still the cornerstone of daily life and the experience of Nature.
In the vein of later Nokturnal Mortum releases (but without the progressive leanings), the band’s sound is mainly derived from the canons of melodic black metal and its focus on contrasting triumphalism with the dysphoric darkness inherent in black metal. The basis is tremolo-picked riffs that through their interaction disclose an aspiration towards the epic and adventurous, offset by effective, ferocious vocals that greatly contribute to the music‘s darker undertone, exerting their full force during the blast-beat sections.
The harshness of the vocals and instrumentation is countered by pleasant, consonant melodies that take center stage in moments where the drums turn to slower rhythms, as if to allow the music’s more melodic content to rise to the foreground for proper appreciation and absorption. Traditional instruments are often summoned to brighten these sections and emphasize the folkloric connotations, appearing as well during interludes or, like in the interesting last song, an introduction guided by traditional percussion to which the electric guitars and sinister vocalizations are gradually grafted, successfully evoking a celebratory ambiance from which darker intonations aren’t excluded.
This is a format that many listeners will be accustomed with, and given that Ysyry Mollvün do not attempt a reinvention of these forms, predictability might be a significant factor in the listening experience of those more familiar with these aesthetic avenues. The band still deserves the recognition proper to a well executed album in this genre, leaving a trail of promise for future endeavours.
