Artist: Hellveto (Poland)
Album Title: Od Południa na Północ...
Record Label: Ritual Execution Productions (Poland)
Released: 2009
Before Hellveto's Neoheresy was released in late 2008, there was a build-up of anticipation due to the promotion given the album by Pulverised Records. They have been the primary label of Hellveto since 2006's In the Glory of Heroes, while at the same time band mastermind L.O.N. has used his own Ritual Execution label to release reissues of demos and compilations of new and old Hellveto material. However, in the case of Hellveto's first 2009 release Od Południa na Północ... --and I say first because there is a second full-length, Kry, scheduled to be released at the end of 2009-- the Ritual Execution label was used to release a full-length album of brand-new material, and it arrived with no hype or promotion. It's also limited to 1,000 copies, I believe. I was excited when I found out about this album, as I am always in the mood for new Hellveto, so I picked it up as soon as I could, thanks to Red Stream's distro.
If you're familiar with 2008's Neoheresy, or at least the artwork, you may notice that the artwork of Od Południa na Północ... is very similar. This, plus the fact that there is a song called "World of Neoheresy" on the new album, leads me to conclude that this new album is meant to be a companion of sorts to Neoheresy. Hellveto albums are sometimes criticized because they sound so similar, but to fans, each album gains its own identity with repeated listens. However, in this case, it really does sound like a companion piece to Neoheresy. The title track, which opens the album, even sounds very similar to Neoheresy's opening track, "Taran," except a few minutes shorter.
If you're already familiar with Hellveto, you already know what to expect: high quality orchestral pagan black metal, which basically means it sounds like black metal performed with an orchestra along with the traditional guitars, bass, and drums. There have been a number of bands utilizing orchestral music programs in recent years, like Turisas and now Ensiferum, but L.O.N. has been doing this with his Hellveto and Blakagir projects for a decade now, and he continues to improve his craft while releasing a steady stream of full-lengths.
Od Południa na Północ... is another high-quality release in the Hellveto catalogue, and by now you may already know whether or not you want this CD. If you're among those who haven't heard the work of this great, underrated artist, I recommend you check out one of the many full-length albums released over the years. Almost all of them are a great place to start, including this latest CD. It doesn't really tread any new ground, though it does seem to bring back the distorted, Filosofem-era Burzum vocals on a few tracks, and it does seem to emphasize the orchestra more than Neoheresy did. However, for the most part, this is good, familiar Hellveto, and for me and many other fans, that's quite good enough.
No comments:
Post a Comment