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Cor Scorpii was formed by ex-Windir keyboard player Grute Refnes in 2004. This CD unites their 2005 Attagangar demo and their debut album Monument.

Those of you who were fans of Windir will recognize the similarity instantly. Not that Cor Scorpii is just a copycat, but this act represents very well what Windir would sound like today. Of course, you still have the remaining musicians that are still together, but this band is much more in the same vein as that great Norwegian act. Monument is a superb release of pagan black metal made of only great compositions. The musicianship is excellent; the songwriting is mature and subtle while their music bears a nice epic, folksy and atmospheric edge without losing its punchy and melodic touch. The keyboards add a pleasant symphonic, haunted and atmospheric edge all along the way. Two guitars ensure the crunch, power and epic/folksy side. At first, what I thought was a violin or perhaps keyboards ended up being some cool lead guitar playing. You'll hear some good, and sometimes wicked rasps on this as well as epic clean vocals and chant throughout this Nordic opus. Even the demo with its rougher production is full of pleasant pagan tones and nuances. Tracks like "Fall of Man", "Nar Enden er God" and the title track would have easily made it on the full-length. The talent was there from the beginning of this act, no doubt. I liked all the compositions but my overall favorite has to be "The Damned". There are quite a bit of variation on this one, including a folksy vibe, crunchy guitar work, cool time signatures and good atmospheric parts.

Yes, the legacy of Windir is still alive and doing very well!