Folk Metal

Týr, A Night At The Nordic House (Metal Blade 2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , , , ,

Folk metal icons Týr have recorded a live album with an orchestra that exhibits an unforgettable musical symbiosis, A Night At The Nordic House.

It has been a little over twenty years since progressive folk metal band Týr was founded in the Faroe Islands. Their location is certainly a memorable aspect of the band’s character, but of course it is the music they create that sets them apart. Over the years they have released eight full-length studio albums, the most recent being Hel (2019). Their style is a progressive form of epic folk metal that overlaps Viking and death metal as well.

The new album was recorded live at The Nordic House in Tórshavn, in the Faroe Islands on February 8th, 2020, with the Symphony Orchestra of the Faroe Islands. If ever there was a metal band that could make effective and dramatic use of an accompanying orchestra, Týr fits the bill. From the press release … “Working with the Symphony Orchestra was without a doubt one of the highlights of our careers,” admits vocalist Heri Joensen. “The feeling of sheer sophisticated power behind us was extraordinarily uplifting. We were awed by how well the songs worked in a symphonic setting. ‘By The Sword In My Hand,’ for example, seems to take on a new life.”

There are eighteen tracks on the massive album, including the opening intro. “Gates of Hel” is the ideal song to hear first if you want to know what to expect from the rest of the performance. The slow build is enormously enhanced by the fullness of the orchestration. The primary instrument is still the guitar, and the voices and orchestral apparatus work a pervasive, all-encompassing effect. The gruff lead vocals match the perfectly the melodic aspects of the overall musical construction.

“By the Sword in My Hand” is another exemplary performance. The theme is an epic tale of conquest and the ideal instantiation of the narrative. Dazzling lead guitar work and soaring choruses combine into overwhelming musical power. The final track, “Álvur Kongur,” is the capstone, and you get the feeling at the end that seeing this performance would have been as amazing an experience as hearing it.

A Night At The Nordic House is out on Friday March 18th through Metal Blade Records. Highly recommended for fans of Týr, and genre fans as well – but, seriously, if you appreciate folk/Viking/epic metal then you are already a Týr fan.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://tyrband.bandcamp.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/tyrband

Týr website, https://tyr.fo/

Metal Blade Records, https://www.metalblade.com/us/

© Wayne Edwards. All rights reserved.

Týr, A Night At The Nordic House (Metal Blade 2022)

Thy Worshiper, Bajki o Staruchu (Pagan Records 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Innovative metal band Thy Worshiper unleash their fifth long-player, Bajki o Staruchu.

Stationed in Dublin, Thy Worshiper originated in Poland in the early 1990s. Their music is in the line of black folk metal, with heavy death metal vibes occasionally blinking in and out. Pagan themes and mysticism are infused throughout resulting in both an apparent lightening and a clear sinister deepening. The band is Monika Lubas (vocals), Marcin Gasiorowski (vocals and guitar), Dariusz Kubala (vocals and guitar), Krystian Mazur (bass), Marcin Pazera (drums), and Tomasz Grzesik (vocals and percussion).

I read that Bajki o Staruchu translates into English as “Fairytales about an old man.” Further, the album is “a concept with eight new tracks based on fairy tales that are held together by the main character of the album title, the Old Man.” That adds up for a folk metal set.

The compositions have some familiar elements found in many folk metal constructions. The unique aspects are the placements of traditional-sounding instruments and interplay of the more modern black (and even death) metal workings in the context of folk tellings unfamiliar to many who will listen to them. The metal elements are not as scritchy as they would be in metal-only music and the folk entries are moreso than you typically hear in blended musical paradigms. It is an intoxicating combination.

The beautiful voice of Monika Lubas contributes immeasurably to the cohesiveness of the music. Lovely, lilting singing engages you in parts of the songs and macabre whispers or chants appear elsewhere. The hypnotic nature of much of the music is the set stone to the experience. You are pulled in and brought along by the rhythm and the voices, even when you do not understand the language the words are sung in. I can see how playing this album could become a ritual for me. Recommended.

Bajki o Staruchu is out now from Pagan Records.

Links.

Website, https://www.thyworshiper.com/

Bandcamp, https://thyworshiper.bandcamp.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/thyworshiper/

Pagan Records, https://pagan-records.com/

Thy Worshiper, Bajki o Staruchu (Pagan Records 2021)

Green Lung, Black Harvest (Svart records 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , , , ,

London heavy psych band Green Lung rolls out their second long-player, Black Harvest.

Green Lung is a relatively new band, having come together in 2017. They released a demo that year, then the Free The Witch EP the next. Woodland Rites (2019) was their first full-length album. The Metal Archives lists band members as Joseph Ghast (bass), Matt Wiseman (drums), Scott Black (guitar), Tom Templar (vocals), and John Wright (organ).

The album is filled with massively heavy riffs living in the same pasture with folk metal sensibilities and a magical reality that takes deep tokes on the regular. The music is generally heavier than what you hear in bands that get categorized in folk metal, and it is often more up-tempo than you hear in music labeled heavy psych. The lead breaks tend to be more metal than stoner bands, too. So what is this? It is Green Lung. Lend them your ear.

Black Harvest has ten tracks offering up an enticing variety of sounds and experiences. Four singles were released in advance of full drop, each showcasing different aspects of the band’s expressions. “Leaders of the Blind” has a ripping lead break that sank it’s teeth deep in my mind while “Upon The Altar” is more mystical in tone and still very heavy. Indeed, this song is perhaps the most complete representation of the band in the set.

The final two songs are showstoppers. “Doomsayer” delivers a dark message and then “Born To A Dying World” is oddly reassuring in its initial gentle delivery of bad news. Lyrical vocals and soulful guitar movements in the early part of the song are punched by heavy riffs then overrun by dramatic elements before the final consolation. Here endeth the album. Recommended.

You can get Black Harvest now on CD, digital, and vinyl through Bandcamp, the merch store link below, or Svart Records.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://greenlung.bandcamp.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/greenlungband

Merch store, https://www.hellomerch.com/collections/green-lung

Svart Records, https://svartrecords.com/product/greenlung-black-harvestalbum/

Green Lung, Black Harvest (Svart records 2021)

Felled, The Intimate Earth (Transcending Obscurity 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Emerging from an ancient haunted forest with their debut album, Felled entrances with blackened neofolk metal.

Eugene, Oregon is where Felled comes from. After releasing a demo in 2017, they follow up that early work with their first full-length album, The Intimate Earth. The band is Cavan Wagner (guitar and vocals), Brighid Wagner (strings and vocals), Isamu Sato (bass), and Jenn Grunigen (drums and vocals).

The musical style is folk metal, but Felled is unlike the usual band creating this sort of music. From their liberal use of violin and viola to the vocal varieties, the uniqueness of their music is profound.

The opening track is “Ember Dream,” and it begins with a solitary guitar joined in a beautiful melody by bow and string only to be ravaged by a croaking voice and threatening percussion and riffs – it has turned into a melodic black metal song, with a violin accompaniment. Unexpected and memorable.

The other four songs on the album are longer, running between seven and eleven minutes long and taking that time to expand on the ideas presented, exploring the subtleties. “Fire Season on the Outer Rim” listens like a play, with long moments of repose and beautiful voices appearing and disappearing among the recurring metal and journeying violin.

The song I remember most is “Sphagnum in the Hinterlands” for its slow and dooming passages that complement the lighter moments. The final song is “The Salt Binding,” and it is filled with sorrow and melancholy as well as forceful metal elements, finally resolving on a haunting whisper. What Felled is doing here is truly something to behold. Recommended.

The Intimate Earth is out today, July 2nd from Transcending Obscurity Records in a wide variety of formats and with accompanying merch.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://felledblackmetal.bandcamp.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/felledband/

Transcending Obscurity, https://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/

Felled, The Intimate Earth (Transcending Obscurity 2021)

Varmia, bal Lada (M-Theory Audio 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , , ,

Black Metal comes face to face with Folk traditions in Varmia’s new album, bal Lada.

Pagan Metal might actually be better label than Black Metal for Poland’s Varmia. The use of traditional instruments gives a Folk Metal influence and intonation, but it is more than that – the compositions themselves are affected by the traditional music. The new one is the third full-length album from the band since 2017, and the musicians are Lasota (guitar and vocals), Alle (bass), Svarrge (drums), and Piotr (percussion and traditional instruments).

The sounds of birds and nature are interrupted first by pounding percussion then by a heavy guitar riff in the opening track, “Woanie.” Traditional folk choral voices give way to a gravely metal lead right at the end of the intro device, and the first landscape begins to be revealed with the next track.

The music both combines and vacillates between passages that are consistent with what you might hear from other heavy bands and pagan ritual music, but there is always something different going on in every song – sometimes it is a turn of phrase and sometimes it is a goat horn. The music is undeniably heavy and weighty (not the same thing at all), and the integration of pagan ideals with Black and Death Metal tropes and trials is fascinating.

The traditional elements sometimes come through in a particularly focused way, as with “Upperan.” Even so, the metal never melts away. I get deeper feelings of the darker side of nature in this song particularly. “O” is another excellent example of this, and even more so as I think about it – I have never heard anything like this music. The album captivated me from start to finish. Recommended.

Bal Lada drops this Friday, March 12th and can be accessed at Bandcamp. More information can be had at the M-Theory Audio website (link below).

Links.

Bandcamp, https://varmiaband.bandcamp.com/album/bal-lada

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/varmiaband/

Label, https://www.m-theoryaudio.com/

Varmia, bal Lada (M-Theory Audio 2021)

Korpiklaani, Jylhä (Nuclear Blast Records 2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

For almost twenty years, Korpiklaani has been a prominent driving force in the Folk Metal music world, and now they are releasing their eleventh full-length studio album, Jylhä.

It all started with Spirit of the Forest in 2003 and there has been a steady creative flow ever since. The band is from Finland and while there are folk fusion amalgams from many musical traditions all over the globe, there is something that makes this particular folk music the perfect building block for a heavy music combination. Or maybe it is just that the musicians in Korpiklaani are among the very best at what they do, which is certainly true as well. The band is Cane (guitar and vocals), Jonne Järvelä (vocals, guitars, multiple folk instruments), Jarkko Aaltonen (bass), Tuomas Rounakari (violin), Sami Perttula (accordion), and Samuli Mikkonen (drums).

The music begins big in guitars with “Verikoira,” laying down a catchy, quick rhythm for the more traditionally folk elements to surround. The accordion takes the lead on the second track, “Niemi,” at the gate, but the guitar is never far away. The blending of metal and traditional instruments and melody is, after all, the point. Each song has its own look and life, casting a vast array of colors and spells throughout the thirteen songs on the album.

The music on the album is very up-tempo and vibrant, and even on quieter pieces with less riffage (like “Leväluhta”) the metal does not completely disappear. There is always an elegant balance across the diversity of musical structure so that neither primary force is lost to the other. You want to hear this music for that balance, to get the rare elements that don’t typically exist in heavy music while maintaining the adrenaline and drive of metal. That is exactly what comes through in every track. Recommended.

You can pick up the CD and digital download of Jylhä on Friday February 5th. The vinyl versions are a little bit delayed because of the pandemic – they will be out in March.

Links.

Website, https://korpiklaani.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/korpiklaani

Nuclear Blast Records, https://www.nuclearblast.de/label/music/band/news/uebersicht/71067.korpiklaani.html

Korpiklaani, Jylhä (Nuclear Blast Records 2021)

Balothizer, Cretan Smash review (Louvana Records 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

The sophomore album from Balothizer is a heavy fusion of folk music from Crete and sturdy metal influences making the title of the set spot on.

The band is Pav Mav (bass and vocals), Nikos Ziarkas (electric lute), and Steve J. Payne (drums). The band explains that their music for the new album starts with “Cretan folk songs, either for their melodies, historic and regional idioms, potent lyrics, rhythms, patterns or dances” and combines or transforms them into modern metal fusion pieces. This is somewhat different from the approach of their first album in that the new one is heavier, utilizing an electric lute (that’s right) rather than acoustic executions. The result is astonishing.

This music is not like Folk Metal you hear from Scandinavia. It is more in the lane of System of a Down, but Balothizer’s approach is more deeply rooted in the tunes and rhythms of the traditional music they are celebrating. The application of modern instruments and sound does not separate from the roots but it does grow a different branch. The attitude and posture is punk while the reverence for the underlying traditional music is never trampled.

“Jegaman” leaps at you with a fierce speed and relentlessness that grabs your attention immediately. “Peace” emerges slowly with percussion and an echoed voice, then the electric lute kicks in and we are off to a different place. “Aleppo” is the noisiest track, brimming with angular musical leverage and clanking assertions. And then a song like “Anathema” has a quiet beginning, a melancholy feel that evolves over its ten minute path into a bigger, louder call. All of these separate approaches are necessary to complete the full message of the album. The music is very different compared to most other heavy acts – it is a refreshing and welcome listen. Recommended.

Cretan Smash is out now. Check out the available versions at the label link below. Also Bandcamp.

Band photo by Andreas Christophides.

Links.

Band Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Balothizer

Bandcamp, https://balothizer.bandcamp.com/album/cretan-smash

Label, https://www.louvanarecords.com/store#!/Balothizer/

Balothizer, Cretan Smash review (Louvana Records 2020)

Grendel’s Sÿster, Myrtle Wreath / Myrtenkranz review (Cruz Del Sur Music 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

The Myrtle Wreath EP from Grendel’s Sÿster gets a well-deserved broad re-release with Cruz Del Sur Music.

Everybody knows that Grendel’s mother was the one to watch out for, but nobody knows what to expect from his sister. That’s how I felt dropping the (virtual) needle on Myrtle Wreath / Myrtenkranz. – I hadn’t heard any of the band’s work before. They are a Folk Metal trio from Germany. This EP came out in 2019 and is getting wider distribution now. They also released an EP in 2018: Orphic Gold Leaves/Orphische Goldblättchen.

The thing about Folk Metal for me is that I have a short list of bands I like. Korpiklaani, Finntroll, Týr, a few others. I am not a deep diver in these waters, so I do not have a learned opinion. I just know whether I like what I hear. I really like Myrtenkranz.

There are seven songs and an intro bit, and they are presented in two versions each – one in English and one in German. I have a strong and abiding preference for the versions in German. No, I don’t speak German. To my ear singing in German simply sounds better with the music. Grendel’s Sÿster does not sound anything like the bands I listed, really. They are very much on the Folk side of Folk Metal. Plainly, it is like listening to folk songs that employ (fuzzy) electric guitars for instruments. The vocals are beautifully melodic and clear. Beyond traditional Folk constructions, many of the songs have the epic and march urgency heard in music from bands like Falconer, but not as loud. Lead guitar expressions are also low key and tastefully executed. This is a great album for when you are not in the mood to have your block knocked completely off. Recommended.

The physicals start shipping September 25, and the digital is available now at Bandcamp and elsewhere. The first EP Orphic Gold Leaves is not on Spotify (last time I looked) and the hardcopies are sold out, but you can still get the English vocal version as a download.

Links.

https://grendelssyster.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/cruzdelsurmusic/

https://www.cruzdelsurmusic.com/blog/

https://cruzdelsurmusic.bandcamp.com/

Grendel’s Sÿster, Myrtle Wreath / Myrtenkranz review (Cruz Del Sur Music 2020)

Ensiferum, Thalassic review (Metal Blade Records 2020)

Wayne Edwards, , , ,

Ensiferum celebrates 25 years of music with a new album, Thalassic – a Folk Metal epic tale told in heavy sea shanties.

I read that “Ensiferum” is Latin for something like “sword-bearing,” and that “Thalassic” is Greek for “relating to the seas,” so I do now definitely understand why the band’s music has often been called Viking Metal. Still, the broader Folk Metal label usually gets applied to them, placing the band among the storied list of famous acts like Korpiklaani, Finntroll, Amon Amarth, and stands with recent releases like this year’s Falconer album. It is a big tent, and this manner of metal music has legions of fans. Ensiferum brings out the heavy from every angle in Thalassic, the band’s first actual themed album.

The Helsinki band has been making music for two and a half decades, and has gone through many line-up changes and rearrangements throughout their journey. The current band is Sami Hinkka (bass and vocals), Markus Toivonen (guitar and vocals), Petri Lindroos (guitar and vocals), and Janne Parviainen (drums), with Pekka Montin (clean vocals and keyboards) contributing to the studio recording.

The maritime musical gets started with a sweeping orchestral opener, then dives straight into seafaring metal. “Rum, Women, Victory” is an anthem style radio song that alternates between gruff and clean vocals that ride along the waves of roiling guitars and peppering drums. The pace is fast and urgent, and, you can tell from the title, light hearted. This one is going to be a singalong at live shows for sure. The Greek mythology themes start to emerge with “Andromeda,” which takes a more serious and somber tone, opening the way for the full tale to be told. The production is front stage in this album, with a big full sound, a generous use of keyboards, and many moments of relief that keep the music and story moving along. It is designed to be theatrical and they pull it off well. The concept is fully realized and fans of the band and fantasy metal music are going to love this album.

Thalassic is available now from Metal Bade Records in many forms and functionalities. If you are looking for a big sound and a maritime mythology story to go along with it, Ensiferum has your number.

Links.

http://www.facebook.com/Ensiferum

http://www.ensiferum.com

http://www.metalblade.com/ensiferum

Ensiferum, Thalassic review (Metal Blade Records 2020)