Children of Mäani

Children of Mäani - Demo
Velvet Music International, 1998
Genre: Black Metal

1. Tradition: The Birth
2. In the Middle of the Macrocosme - "Those Who are Called VAO"
3. Tiphareth... and Beams of Malchuth - "After the Five Ones"
4. Tradition: My Birth "Where is the Sky of the First?"

With Blut aus Nord standing silent since 1996, but having that incredible The Eye album to listen to in the prior year, I guess some interest in Vindsval's other material has surfaced. If you missed out on this demo from 1995, then it is finally released again, but on CD this time around. This has one of the silliest covers I've ever seen and the "new logo" looks way worse than the original logo on the tape. This really does hold rank for some of the worst album art I've ever seen. The interior is jut strange and the altered cover under the CD looks ridiculous. Luckily nothing has changed about the music, but an improved listening format!

The enhanced music quality really makes this far more enjoyable. Everything feels a lot more full compared to the original tape version. That outro of "In the Middle of the Macrocosme" really hits so much better this time around! While Children of Mäani may not be able to top The Eye, or even Blut aus Nord, I'm glad to see it isn't lost to realms of history in the original demo format. It is certainly a different feel of Black Metal, especially for 1995, but nonetheless quite enjoyable in the grand scheme of things. If you are a fan of Vindsval and interested in his early works, this is certainly not to be missed as well.

Children of Mäani - Demo
Self-Released, 1995
Genre: Black Metal

1. Tradition: The Birth
2. In the Middle of the Macrocosme - "Those Who are Called VAO"
3. Tiphareth... and Beams of Malchuth - "After the Five Ones"
4. Tradition: My Birth "Where is the Sky of the First?"











The same year Blut aus Nord's debut album was released, Vindsval had a demo for another project ready to go. Where "Ultima Thulée" had a very relaxed atmosphere, Children of Mäani seems to be a more intense and heavier project. This comes as a cassette demo tape, similar to Vlad's "Yggdrasil" in format with the same do-it-yourself kind of booklet art. There is a liner note that says "The Child of Mäani plays whatever he wants exclusively!" Which is probably a jab at the bands that state the genre they play, exclusively.

There are certainly similarities between the two projects, sometimes an atmospheric riff easily shows up in songs like "In the Middle of the Macrocosme" towards the end. However, this demo is far more technical than the material found on Blut aus Nord, which makes sense, because this is not supposed to really entrance the listeners, but instead music you pay rather close attention to. There are sections that are far heavier and even bear more Death Metal styled vocals, but the sections come off more related to a Death Doom Style, because they are not really on the level of brutality you'd find with Death Metal. The heavier riffing is more akin to the punishing depths of Doom Metal. The Black Metal aspects range from atmospheric to interesting technicality and bears some serious resemblance to what bands like Emperor have accomplished, but with a blending of the Blut aus Nord style.

I think it's a rather interesting demo, but I do find the Blut aus Nord style a bit more compelling for my tastes. Perhaps the production and tape quality make this a little less accessible in some ways, but the quality actually isn't that bad in the grand scheme of things. It is recorded just as well as the "Yggdrasil" demo. If you're a fan of what Vindsval has been producing lately then this is certainly worth hearing.