In Times

In Times
Studio album by Enslaved
Released 10 March 2015
Recorded September & October 2014
Studio Duper & Solslottet Studios, Earshot & Conclave Studios, Peersonal Sound, Fascination Street Studios
Genre Progressive metal, black metal
Length 53:05
Label Nuclear Blast
Producer Ivar Bjørnson, Grutle Kjellson, Herbrand Larsen, Iver Sandøy
Enslaved chronology
RIITIIR
(2012)		 In Times
(2015)

In Times is the thirteenth studio album by the Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved. It was released on March 10, 2015 by Nuclear Blast. As the title suggests, the album's central theme is that of time, considered philosophically, historically, and mythologically. The album sold about 2,950 copies in its first week of release in the United States, making In Times their highest sales debut to date.[1] The album charted in some territories in its first week of release, including Norway and Finland.[2]

Musical style and writing

In Times marks a further move to a more progressive sound following similar trends on their last few albums.[3] Some reviewers see Herbrand Larsen as responsible for this change, with Exclaim! stating that "the secret star of the record may be keyboardist Herbrand Larsen, whose role in the band has expanded markedly over the past few albums and really comes to the fore on In Times".[4] Loudwire agree, writing in their review that "with each passing album, keyboardist Herbrand Larsen has become a more integral part of the band utilizing his soothing clean vocals to contrast and compliment Grutle’s uncompromising rasp".[3] Ivar Bjørnson of the band told Blabbermouth in an interview that In Times "is the most consistent body of work we have so far: it incorporates our 'blacker' past with our influences from prog rock, our present sense of absolute freedom, and the joy of being in this band".[2]

According to Bjørnson, the title "reflects the existence of multiple realities across ‘places’ and times; both physically and metaphorically. Every bit of thought or reflection involves a variety of times, unconsciously – the past, the present, the future, mythological times, deep time, psychological timelines and so on. So this album is a meditation on the concept of being aware and working with times actively to achieve new situations according to the will. The title makes me think of life, death, runes, esoteric traditions/magic, mythology, gods, quantum physics… everything and nothing and everything".[5] In a separate interview, he said that "it is about “times” and existing in and across several times, the same way you have in mythological or a mystical perspective of time, creation and the forthcoming, the end of the world. It was interesting enough that we have philosophies and science, not like in mythology, (in this) everything is certain. It was Christianity (and other religions) that first introduced the concept of the world ending, with no more beginnings after that. So that’s one perspective."

Recording and production

The album was recorded in Bergen, Norway, and was mixed in Sweden by Jens Bogren at his Fascination Street Studios.[2] The first track to be written for the album was 'Thurisaz Dreaming', following their Australian tour, and according to Bjørnson set the tone for the rest of the album.[6] An article in Terrorizer explains that "some of the album’s weirder textures and sounds were conducted deep in the woods of Valevåg, south of Bergen, in a mobile studio adding that "you can definitely hear the earthy, organic feel this has given the album".[7] Kjellson has said that the band wished to capture a more "organic" sound in the recording of this album, and that "We decided we wanted to have a more live music approach. We decided to record the drums, bass and rhythm guitars live in the studio. I think we were onto something then so we decided to go for that this time as well and this time we decided to rehearse a lot more prior to recording so, it was pretty flawless this time. We were careful so we had a good time, the three of us recording the main themes, bass guitars and drums."[8]

The liner notes for the album include a note that reads "All Hello Kitty-ride playing dedicated to Fenriz".[9] This is in reference to a comment Fenriz made in regard to a ride cymbal pattern often used by Enslaved.[10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic78/100[11]
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com[12]
AllMusic[13]
Blabbermouth10/10[14]
Exclaim!8/10[4]
Loudwirefavourable[3]
Metal Hammer[15]
Pitchfork Media6.2/10[16]
Sputnikmusic4/5[17]
Ultimate Guitar8.3/10[18]

In Times received mostly positive reviews from music critics. On the Metacritic website, which aggregates reviews from critics and assigns a normalised rating out of 100, the album received a score of 78 based on 4 reviews.[11] The German variant of Metal Hammer named In Times as album of the month in its March 2015 issue.[19] Writing for Pitchfork, Andy O'Connor review argued that "there isn't a whole lot differentiating one song from another, and many [songs] feel longer than they are", and states that the album is "competent musically but too timid to go into the depths, emotional, musical or otherwise, that black metal should strive for."[16] Loudwire's Joe DiVita states that "the ever-consistent Enslaved have churned out another album to cement their legendary status in a style they continue to call their own".[3] Thom Jurek's review for AllMusic described the album as "a continuum of the sonic approach they began exploring on 2001's Monumension, mixing black metal with "progressive elements, sonic ambiences, and even psychedelic explorations", and summarises the review by calling the album "vital, bracing music".[13] In her review for Exclaim!, Natalie Zina Walschots states that "Enslaved have hit a sweet spot with In Times, experimenting just enough to keep everything interesting while also offering up pure aggressive pleasure so decadent it seems almost indulgent".[4]

Track listing

All lyrics written by K Grutle and I Peersen; all music composed by I Peersen.

No. TitleLyrics Length
1. "Thurisaz Dreaming"  Peersen 8:13
2. "Building With Fire"  Grutle 8:49
3. "One Thousand Years of Rain"  Grutle 8:13
4. "Nauthir Bleeding"  Grutle/Peersen 8:10
5. "In Times"  Peersen 10:44
6. "Daylight"  Grutle/Peersen 8:56
Total length:
 53:05

Personnel

Enslaved
Extra personnel

Chart performance

Charts (2015) Peak
position
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[20] 97
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[21] 39
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[22] 66
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[23] 28
UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart[24] 9
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[25] 8
US Top Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[26] 4
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[27] 16
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[28] 25
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[29] 12

References

  1. ↑ "Metal By Numbers 3/18: Keeping in timeMetal Insider". Metal Insider. 2015-03-18. Retrieved 2016-11-06.
  2. 1 2 3 "ENSLAVED: 'In Times' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 DiVita, Joe (10 March 2015). "Enslaved - In Times - Album Review". Loudwire. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 Walschots, Natalie Zina (10 March 2015). "Enslaved - In Times review". Exclaim!. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  5. ↑ Birchenall, Geoff. "ENSLAVED: The Landscapes of Times". 3RD-EYE Magazine. Retrieved 2016-11-06.
  6. ↑ Nuclear Blast Records (2015-02-24), ENSLAVED - In Times Track By Track, Part 1 (OFFICIAL INTERVIEW), retrieved 2016-11-06
  7. ↑ Whelan, Kez (26 February 2015). "Listen To Enslaved's New Song 'One Thousand Years Of Rain'". Terrorizer. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  8. ↑ "Enslaved's Grutle Kjellson Talks 'In Times' Album + More". Loudwire. Retrieved 2016-11-06.
  9. ↑ album liner notes
  10. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aRu_3WvE6c
  11. 1 2 "In Times - Enslaved". Metacritic. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  12. ↑ Schalek, Dave. "Enslaved - In Times Review". About.com. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  13. 1 2 Jurek, Thom. "Enslaved In Times review". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  14. ↑ Van Horn, Ray. "CD Reviews - In Times - Enslaves - Blabbermouth". Blabbermouth. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  15. ↑ Dare, Tom (February 27, 2015). "Enslaved: In Times". Metal Hammer. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  16. 1 2 O'Connor, Andy (13 March 2015). "Enslaved In Times review". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  17. ↑ Kuettel, Ben (March 5, 2015). "Review: Enslaved - In Times". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  18. ↑ East, Brandon (March 17, 2015). "In Times Review". Ultimate Guitar. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  19. ↑ Müller, Robert (18 February 2015). "Album Des Monats Enslaved In Times". Metal Hammer (Germany). Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  20. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Enslaved – In Times" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  21. ↑ "Enslaved: In Times" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  22. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Enslaved – In Times". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  23. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Enslaved – In Times". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  24. ↑ "Archive Chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  25. ↑ "Enslaved – Chart history" Billboard Top Hard Rock Albums for Enslaved. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  26. ↑ "Enslaved – Chart history" Billboard Top Heatseekers Albums for Enslaved. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  27. ↑ "Enslaved – Chart history" Billboard Independent Albums for Enslaved. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  28. ↑ "Enslaved – Chart history" Billboard Top Rock Albums for Enslaved. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  29. ↑ "Enslaved – Chart history" Billboard Top Tastemaker Albums for Enslaved. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
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