Australia seems to be a great spawning point for good dissonant heavy metal, Ulcerate and Ne Obliviscaris being the two most obvious examples. Ur Draugr falls between these two bands in sound. Being on one hand relying on dissonance a lot and on the other hand progressive and black metal.

Often taking one idea, or riff, or motif, and building on it, applying it in different environments and dislocating it in a lot of ways. The mind(s) of the band really know how to craft a song so it’s a continuous flow, evolving and keeping our interest up. With a good mix of acoustic and electric guitars, the whole thing sounds really organic and alive.

As with so many great releases, I only wish it lasted longer. With only three songs and under 20 minutes of running time, there’s not much meat here, but what is there is good and has just the right place for us to enjoy.

Ur Draugr, I find The Wretched Ascetic really good, and I need more of that, soon!