There are many instrumental progressive metal albums out there; I probably receive a dozen new multi-instrumentalist one-man projects every week in my inbox. Sometimes, one stands out, though. I’m really liking the new Lights of Skadi album. Called A Cinematic Experience, it is the follow-up to their orchestral EP from 2024; it released on March 7th.
Lights of Skadi haven’t had an easy time getting their music out to the world. They debuted in 2019 with the album Shimmer, but COVID shut down touring and festival efforts. Members of the band left at that point, and some returned. It’s something of a mess for them, unfortunately, but the future looks bright. The current lineup seems to be Jörgen André and Jesper Jansson. The album also includes work from Andy Gillion, Mattias IA Eklundh, Polina Faustova, Cesar Ambrosini, Alexander Borger, and Carl Sjursvens.
A Cinematic Experience has a straightforward title, but it does describe the album well. The music here is progressive metal fused with epic cinematic music. I’ve seen some citing Dream Theater and the usual suspects, but what I hear is dark Swedish prog metal with gothic, orchestral, symphonic trappings. It is deliciously shadowy, full of spiraling musical staircases, soaring spire peaks, and darkened hallways deep within the bowels of the Earth.
The music is heavy on riffs and mighty orchestrations, and while I won’t say it has deep personality, the record certainly has a style. It’s one of those albums that you will find yourself throwing on time and again, just because of the clarity of mind and soothing flow that it produces in your mind. I’ll even say it embodies some characteristics of Skadi herself; being the Norse goddess of winter and hunting, she is passionate, strong, and enduring, and the album feels that way.
The album has seven tracks and lasts about 53 minutes. For me the first half is the stronger of the two. The album opens with “Book of the Dead”, which is beautiful and haunting as it slowly introduces the riffs. Next comes “Species”, the only track with vocals (courtesy of Carl Sjursvens); this song didn’t hit me the first couple times, but I’ve come to love the chorus and the expressive guitar phrasing. The first half ends with the album centerpiece, “Gods”. This track is 13 minutes long and is truly cinematic; I love the dark heaviness of the riffs up against the powerful orchestrations and eerie electronic accents. It weaves and flows through various movements and transitions, and the whole affair is simply mesmerizing.
The second half has some good stuff, too. “Far Away” is mostly orchestral for the first few minutes when it gradually adds the riffs and then starts emoting through saxophone. It doesn’t feel out of place, though, as the sax peals with dark desire and longing. “Nephelia” is heavy once again, but is laced with subtle synth, and so feels sinister. The closer is technically “Norse Code”, an epic music track light on the riffs but heavy on the atmosphere. It feels strangely like something from the Halo 3 score at points, if that makes sense. The album truly ends with an instrumental version of “Species”, and I only mention it here because of how great it sounds at the end of the album. Many times, I skip such bonus tracks, but it feels like an appropriate reprise, and I love it.
Lights of Skadi have a rock-solid album on their hands. It’s not overly long and it visits various pathways through light and darkness. I will always be a sucker for riffs and orchestrations, and they lean into that sound well. I’m interested to see where they go from here.
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Find Lights of Skadi online:
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The PROG Mind 