Back in 2020, along with fellow revered 90s Black Metal acts Naglfar and ..And Oceans, Sweden’s Mörk Gryning returned after a long hiatus to deliver Hinsides vrede, and it was, like their peers, a killer return to the fray. delivering a perfect 90s throwback to…. themselves? and of course, the other two bands mentioned above.

But the challenge is, can you follow up on such an album? Once that glow and fan excitement of a reunited legend fades, can you keep it up? We have yet to see with Naglfar as they have yet to follow up Cerecloth, but … And Oceans did OK, with the second reunification album As In Gardens, So In Tombs.  So how does Mörk Gryning fare with their second album after reuniting?

Well, pretty damn good, but not quite as truly stunning as Hinsides vrede.

As Hinsides vrede before it, with “Fältherren”, Fasornas Tid comes out of the gate strong with perfect 90s styled melodic black metal pulling from the above bands and of course Dissection with “The Seer” “Tornet”, “Before The Crows Have Their Feast”, arguably the album standout with the subtle but well-done synths on the chorus and some clean vocals arise here and there, but they are sparing and fit in decently.

That said, like its predecessor, the album’s back end tails off a bit, with two slower mid-album songs in “Savage Messiah”, and “An Ancient Ancestor Of The Autumn Moon” that drag the ferocious momentum down a bit. I’m all for some slower, songs to break up the pace, but two in a row really bring things down a bit. The mid-paced rollick of “Black Angel” instrumental acoustic interlude “Barren Paths” doesn’t help.

The final trio of “The Serpent’s Kiss”, particularly vicious “Det Svarta”, and “Age Of Fire”, bring back some of the energy from the album’s early stages, ending things on a solid note, as “Black Spirit” did on the prior album.

And while the album has some great riffs, nothing comes close to “A Glimpse of the Sky” from Hinsides Vrede, which was arguably one of my favorite songs in the genre from the last few years.  But Fasornas Tid is still a great 2nd album after the reunion and shows that Hinsides Vrede wasn’t just a one hit reunion.

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