There’s a long and rich history of black metal bands reaching a specific moment in their career where they decide to reach for the nearest lute and do something “unexpected”. There’s usually a bearded man hitting a goat-skin drum, quite often a string quartet, and, almost always, a distinct feeling that you’ve stumbled into a medieval tavern. With ‘Interwoven’, Portland’s masked misery merchants Uada have joined the extreme campfire circle and come out smelling rather better than expected. All the aforementioned stereotypes are still present and correct, but this feels more like you’re sneaking a glance under the safety blanket of distortion and being rewarded with a glimpse at the melodic bones beneath.
Formed in 2014, Uada quickly built a reputation as one of the torchbearers of US melodic black metal, releasing a steady run of records from ‘Devoid of Light’ through to 2023’s ‘Crepuscule Natura’. Although they are known for their intense melodic black metal, they have always used atmospheric songwriting to elevate their music. ‘Interwoven’ revisits that history quite literally, reworking one track from each chapter of the band’s catalogue whilst also adding in a couple of covers for good measure (we’ll get to them later). This is a retrospective being delivered by the glowing light of a campfire.
The surprise here is how natural the transition feels. Blast beats and stormy tremolo-lines are replaced by acoustic guitars and cellos, yet the emotional core remains intact. Opener “Djinn” is possibly the clearest example of just how well Uada have done here, it’s a slow, hypnotic reimagining that trades their usual ferocity for a sombre intimacy, whilst simultaneously revealing just how adept the songwriting was to begin with. “The Dark (Winter)” is another prime example, the mournful melodies carry the same sense of frozen wastelands that you get from the original, only now it feels more like the blizzard has passed and left you alone with your thoughts…and a rather damp cloak.
Their decision to cover “Der Brandaucher” by neo-folk legends ROME is an inspired choice and one of the highlights of the record, Jake Superchi’s baritone vocals are perfectly suited to this gothic, crooning style of music and it left me wanting more of this in the future please! Meanwhile, the cover of Nirvana’s “Something in the Way” lands somewhere between a reverent homage and a late-night bedroom confession. It’s an odd choice on paper, but in practice it does fits the introspective nature of the album surprisingly well.
Not everyone will be convinced by this release, it’s not something wholly unique within the genre (although Uada do it better than most) and some listeners will likely think of it as an interesting, but unnecessary, experiment. But, ultimately, ‘Interwoven’ isn’t trying to replace Uada’s established sound, it’s simply informing us that underneath the distortion and theatrics lies a band that are more than capable of genuine vulnerability.
Best Paired with – A flagon of mead, a good supply of firewood, and a pot of suspicious looking stew.
Reviewed by Bryn.
uada – interwoven is out now on eisenwald.
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