CoC : Thy Grief - The Frozen Tomb of Mankind : Review

Thy Grief - _The Frozen Tomb of Mankind_
(Solistitium, 1997)
by: Andrew Lewandowski (9 out of 10)

With each tormented melody and scream, Thy Grief evokes the entire emotional spectrum of despair. No stone, oscillating from crippling loneliness to pugnacious anger, is left untouched. Thy Grief also uses every form of black metal as they reap the optimum amount of emotion from each second: most of the songs are mid-paced and emphasize technical skill (although they never ostentatiously flaunt it) and blackened melodies, yet they also skillfully alternate between arcane dirges and brutal frenzies. Thy Grief has also discerned the equilibrium separating abuse and transience of each riff and keyboard passage, a rarity for a novice band. Granted, they have a few discernible similarities to their peers (for example, the ending of "Da Morket Omfavnet Meg" sounds as if Thy Grief usurped it from "I Am the Black Wizards"), and no track equals the grandiose, Wagnerian fury of the opener, but this Norwegian quartet has the potential to become one of the scene's best bands.

(article published 17/11/1997)