Sarke – Endo Feight

Sarke is a pioneer Norwegian metal act who was founded more than 15 years ago. It started out as an one-man band, but was later joined by musicians from bands such as Dimmu Borgir, Satyricon, Borknagar, Testament, Khold etc. Current line-up consists of; Nocturno Culto (vocals), Sarke (bass & drums), Steinar Gundersen (guitars) and Anders Hunstad (keyboards).

Now this experienced quartet returns with their new and official eight full-length album entitled Endo Feight. It’s been released via Soulseller Records on 21st June 2024, and it contains eight tracks with 37 minutes of playing time. This new opus covers everything from Sarke’s lightest to the hardest parts. Songs are mainly mid-paced and mid-length, of what I would call a pure dark rock/metal. Thus, one can hear their sound being inspired by the great rock act’s of the 70’s, but also speed metal of the 80’s and black metal of the 90’s. When all these ingredients are put together, what we get is this raw, pure and honest dark metal.

Now this is the way to open an album, as “Phantom Recluse” showcase some interesting progressive rock influences, dry and harsh trademark vocals of Nocturno Culto, and extremely powerful handling of the instruments, most notable proggy keyboard parts creating this fantastic atmosphere. It sure makes sense why this song opens the album, providing us with a nice glimpse of what is to expect from the rest of the album. The first real classic on this album comes along here, with this beautifully textured and psychedelic piece called, “Death Construction”. It’s pretty much rock ‘n’ roll guitar-driven track that is recognizable for its spiky jazzy riffs, another excellent and wild keyboards solos, and numerous untraditional and weird time changes. Next one is almost a ballad-like song called “Lost”. This track oozes old-school dark vibes, being gentle yet strident in its approach. It features some wonderfully emotive and smooth guitar parts which really caries this song. Meanwhile they’re accompanied by some grinding vocals and the spacey feeling from the keyboards. Thus, “Lost” is another excellent song, keeping the album so far on track. “Abysmal Echoes” opens with pleasing acoustic guitars and a matching solo before the keys and vocals kicks in. This is the first track on the record where we can hear some blackish groove and distorted guitars that gives space for acosutic ones towards the end of the song. “Old Town Sinner” is another excellent song on Endo Feight, as the rollercoaster ride of this album continues. It starts with a razor-sharp riff, then offering a nice metal solo and the icing on the cake, a superb story-telling which works nicely with the vocal approach and the sinister atmosphere of predominant keys. “I Destroyed The Cosmos” features some doom metal elements mixed with a pure heaviness and darkness that flows throughout the song. “In Total Allegiance” we have the exact opposite to the previous track, a real change of pace, featuring some blast-beats in the vein of a typical Norwegian black metal. This change is most welcome offering some more diversity and varied tempo. The strong close to the album continues with the closing track, “Macabre Embrace”. It’s a dark, doomy, cinematic and delicious song, a great finish to an album!

In the end, the production & mixing was done by Lars-Erik Westby and Sofia von Hage. They’ve done top-notch work here by providing this clean and organic sound, while maintaining the rawness and the aggression that you would expect from this kind of a release.

Endo Feight is a bit complex album, and it takes some time, and some spins, to digest it properly. In actuality every element is really in place here, where Endo Feight is a musical journey that breaks barriers within the metal scene. So if you want to dive in and take a look at this highly anticipated eight full-length opus from Sarke, or just want to check band’s whole discography, then go to https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/