Album Review: Svartby - "Kom I Min Kittel"

Artist: Svartby (Russia)
Album Title: Kom I Min Kittel
Label: Phono (Russia) / Trollzorn (Germany)
Released: 2007 (Phono) / 2008 (Trollzorn)

I am encountering some difficulty with the opening of this review, because no matter which angle I attempt to use, it all comes back to the same phrase: Svartby sounds a lot like Finntroll. Yes, they've got the Swedish lyrics, just like Finntroll. This is all the more remarkable because Svartby is a Russian band from Saint Petersburg, and I strongly doubt that Swedish is the native language of any member of the band. Svartby also uses a lot of polka rhythms, also like Finntroll. Both bands write songs about creatures from folklore. Both bands' musical aesthetic pits extreme metal (complete with growling vocals) against a backdrop of "evil fairy tale" melodies. It's very obvious where Svartby's primary influences lie.

A post made by a representative of their label, Trollzorn, at the Viking Blood forum, describes Svartby's lyrical themes like this: "The band sings about wild magical creatures living in Svartby (the Black Village) - witches, dwarfs, tree spirits - definitely unkind to human folk, but at the same time merry, nature-loving and nice living beings with a good sense of humor." The music certainly lives up to this description, as I frequently got the feeling that I was listening to what the soundtrack to a fairy tale, albeit a twisted one. Yes, this is not far removed from the aesthetic that Finntroll already established, especially with their first three albums, but Svartby, to my ears at least, has an overall "lighter" and more playful atmosphere than their Finnish inspiration. This is particulary true now that Finntroll has decided to travel in a darker and more serious direction (though we're speaking in relative terms here) with their latest album, 2007's Ur Jordens Djup. I think that those who are looking for something more like Jaktens Tid or Nattfödd might find Svartby's sound quite agreeable to them.

Kom I Min Kittel begins with some sound effects (including a kettle boiling) and a brief (but pretty) instrumental before launching into the title track, which establishes the fact that, yes, you are listening to some polka-infused folk metal here. The fairy tale-like melodies are handled by a very capable keyboard player, whose work is undoubtedly the focal point of the overall sound. There is a variety of sound effects throughout the CD as well, including wolves growing and howling, goats bleating (is that the correct word?), a witch cackling, and a frog croaking. These add to the overall light and fun feeling that this album has, and help give the impression (to this listener at least) that Svartby is a band that is enjoying themselves. The only moment on the album that may cause some concern for sensitive listeners (at least those who, like me, don't understand Swedish... I have no idea what the lyrics are saying) is the beginning of "Julen Av Vedergällning," a song that begins with a rendition of "Silent Night," which transitions into the sound of flames and people screaming, and then explodes into probably the fastest and most aggressive song on the album. This (somewhat playful) anti-Christian moment is reflected in an illustration in the booklet of what looks like a bear standing in the snow in front of a burning church. It's nothing that Finntroll hasn't done before (Jaktens Tid has a similar track), but a few may be bothered by it.

Svartby's full-length debut is a pretty short album (only 33 minutes), but it's so enjoyable that I often listen to it all the way through more than once. Really, the only knock I can make against Svartby is that, no matter how good they are (and they are quite good), they are doomed to sit in the shadow of the well-known band that inspired them if they do not establish their own identity. There are certainly moments of originality, such as the wonderful "Moder Av Alla Häxor," but generally they do not stray very far from an established sound. A band that shows this much spirit and talent deserves to be viewed as more than just "that Russian band that sounds like Finntroll," so I'm hoping that their sound will evolve into something a little more original. Maybe they'll be like Morrigan, a band that, at one point, seemed content to re-create Bathory's "Blood Fire Death" but then became something great on their own terms without losing the qualities that made their earlier albums so enjoyable despite their derivativeness. I love the overall aesthetic and the atmosphere Svartby creates, so I really hope to hear more from them.

I'm reluctant to give the album my full recommendation because I know that a lot of metal fans who are more jaded than I am will dismiss Svartby because of the similarities between them and their main influence. However, if you're not one of those fans and can still enjoy a band despite those similarities, Kom I Min Kittel is a very enjoyable (and addicting) album full of great songs. It has put a smile on my face many times, even when I'm at work (a feat which is not always easy these days). I'm certainly glad I took a chance on it.

Album Review: Astaarth - "Gloria Burgundia"

Artist: Astaarth (France)
Album Title: Gloria Burgundia
Label: Bloodfiredeath (Germany)
Released: 2007

Astaarth is a band (now a duo) that has been in existence since 1996, yet Gloria Burgundia is their first album (not including two demos released in 1998 and 2002, respectively). According to the insert, Astaarth plays "Burgundian Pagan/folk Metal exclusively," this statement being followed by about twenty exclamation points. Listening to this album has had the benefit of forcing me to learn some things about the history of Burgundy, a region of France and Switzerland that was once the site of the kingdom of the Burgundians, an East Germanic tribe that probably originated from Scandinavia. As a lyric from the album's opening track, "Our Beloved Country," states: "We are not French, nor another nationality. We are Burgundians above all." Okay, then. These guys mean business.

The music can be described as somewhat raw and epic black metal with a strong folk sound. One half of the duo plays, in addition to the expected heavy metal instruments, the épinette (a form of zither found in France), banjo, double-bass, and Irish pipes. There are also several guest musicians on the recording, so, in addition to those instruments, we are treated to the sound of the hurdy gurdy, mouth harp, flute, violin, accordion, and spoons (!). To top it off, there are backing vocalists who sing choir parts as well as pieces of traditional Burgundian songs that appear within the construct of the long (between 7 and 12 minute) tracks. Two shorter instrumental tracks round out the package, leaving us with a very odd but compelling 57-minute folk metal album. The lyrics are almost all in English, and primarily deal with Burgundian history and nationalism.

My first listen to this album was a strange experience due to the contrast of the black metal and the frequent folk sections. One moment I was listening to a fairly normal black metal with the expected shrieking vocals, and then in the next moment I'm hearing weird yipping sounds, handclaps, acoustic guitar, mouth harp, double-bass, and another stringed instrument that I'm assuming is the épinette. I'm no neophyte to to folk metal, but even I had to become accustomed to the music Astaarth creates on Gloria Burgundia. I can't even imagine the reaction that a person who is not at all familiar to folk metal would have if I were to play the album for them, especially the track "Vae Victis," which is the one with the spoons.

Although I enjoy Gloria Burgundia immensely, I found that, in contrast to the vibrant (and often smile-inducing) folk sections, some of the longer black metal-oriented sections can be dry. Astaarth is miles more interesting when they bring in the folk instruments and traditional melodies. Fortunately, the black metal sections are made better when the violin, bagpipes, and other instruments play along, though I didn't always notice them at first listen.

Astaarth is likely to have limited appeal with Gloria Burgundia, because, even by folk metal standards, this is a bit of a niche product. I think that some listeners will be entertained but will view it as no more than a novelty due to the uniqueness of the sound. However, I have found it both entertaining and enlightening, and I enjoy it even more with each listen. It persuaded me to look into the history of Burgundy, a subject with which I was unfamiliar previously, so that says something about its impact on me. It's definitely an album to check out if you're looking for something different and perhaps challenging. It's a great album, but, like most folk metal, it's going to sound perplexing and strange to those who aren't prepared for it.

So, prepare yourself with a visit to Astaarth's Myspace profile and give them a listen. I can almost guarantee that you've never heard anything else like it. I would definitely recommend Gloria Burgundia to open-minded fans of folk metal, and I hope we won't have to wait 11 years to hear a second album from this Burgundian duo.

Nokturnal Mortum live footage on Youtube

The notorious Ukrainian pagan metal band, opening for Satyricon in Kiev, performs a new song here

Counting the days until The Voice of Steel is released...

Album Review: Altorių Šešėliai - "Margi Sakalai"

Artist: Altorių Šešėliai [Altar Shadows] (Lithuania)
Album Title: Margi Sakalai (Speckledy Falcons)
Label: Todestrieb Records (U.K.)
Released: 2007

I blame my unfortunate lack of knowledge about Lithuania on the fact that, when I was being taught European history and geography in school, the country was a part of the Soviet Union. Whoever wrote the textbooks my school used seemed to believe that countries that had been annexed by the U.S.S.R. were assimilated forever and therefore had lost their identity, even though countries like Lithuania had existed for hundreds of years before the Soviet Union. In fact, Lithuania will celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of its name in 2009.

With such a long and rich history as this nation has (for instance, it was the last pagan nation in Europe, and put up quite a resistance during the Northern Crusades), it's inevitable that musical acts will arise who revere and celebrate its past and present. One of them is Altorių Šešėliai, more popularly known as Altar Shadows, which brings us "poetic pagan black metal from the feral gardens and misty soilfields of lowland Lithuania." Simply to call it black metal would be inaccurate, though, as there is quite a bit of folk on this one-man project's first "major" release, Margi Sakalai, which I will call Speckledy Falcons from this point on (since it's the title as it appears on the cover of the Todestrieb Records release, and I find it endearing).

As you can probably tell by the description, the title, and the cover of the album, the theme of nature is very much present in Altar Shadows' music. Many of the lyrics are taken from Lithuanian poetry, and some of the melodies used are folk tunes. The music itself, on most of the tracks at least, is pretty raw black metal. Some of it reminds me of the first few Wyrd albums and the Hungarian black metal project Marblebog. I am at times also reminded of Agalloch. While much of Speckledy Falcons is in this atmospheric black metal style (though he often includes acoustic guitar, possibly a mandolin, and once in a while a flute), there are some beautiful softer moments as well. My favorite track on the album is the acoustic version of "Að Taip Laukiu" ("I'm Waiting"), the original of which appeared on a previous release. This track features a female guest vocalist and adds depth to what was already a great song. Another favorite track is the instrumental "Gelsvas Mënuo III" ("The Yellow Moon III"). I don't usually care for instrumentals in the middle of an album, but sometimes I put this one on repeat.

Speckledy Falcons is a wonderful album, a work of melancholy beauty. The only song that doesn't seem to fit is a cover song called "Eternal Wars," which is a song by fellow Lithuanian project Blackthru. Musically, it's a pretty solid track, but the lyrics (typical black metal stuff about the war between God and Lucifer), which are in English on this one song, don't fit with the rest of the album. That's all right, though, because it doesn't detract from the album when I'm listening to it.

Thanks to Todestrieb, Speckledy Falcons is not a difficult album to obtain as of this writing. I'm not sure that every fan of folk, pagan, or atmospheric black metal would enjoy this album, but I think that fans of these genres should definitely check out Altar Shadows. A few tracks from Speckledy Falcons can be streamed from his Myspace page here if you are interested.

Album Review: Eluveitie - "Slania"

Artist: Eluveitie (Switzerland)
Album Title: Slania
Label: Nuclear Blast (Germany, USA)
Released: 2008

Though it seems unlikely that melodic death metal and traditional Celtic music can mix into something listenable, Eluveitie has been doing precisely that since their 2003 debut EP, Vên, arrived on the folk metal scene. Vên was received well enough that this former studio project became a full-fledged band, releasing their first album, Spirit, in 2006. Due to their accessible and enjoyable sound, they've gained a strong and loyal fanbase over the last few years. With their signing late last year to the large metal label Nuclear Blast, Eluveitie was given an opportunity to expose a much wider audience to their unique brand of folk metal. Fortunately, they did not squander that opportunity, as their second album, Slania, is an amazing piece of work, in many ways a refinement of the elements that made Spirit such a popular album in the scene.

Eluveitie's sound is an intriguing blend of Gothenburg-style death metal (think In Flames or Dark Tranquillity) and Celtic music. The eight-piece band (formerly they had as many as ten members) not only features two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer, but four members who play traditional instruments. The vocalist, Chrigel Glanzmann, also plays flute, bagpipes, mandola, bodhrán, and acoustic guitar. One member plays bagpipes and various flutes, another plays violin, and yet another plays the hurdy gurdy. Unlike many folk metal bands who only have occasional folk elements, for Eluveitie it is an integral part of their sound and not simply a gimmick or "tacked-on" element.

Thematically, Eluveitie deals primarily with Celtic (Gaulish, to be specific) history. Oppression and conquest by the Roman Empire is a frequent lyrical theme, which means that many of Eluveitie's songs seem angry, a feeling that is enhanced by the nature of the melodic death metal that makes up the base of their sound. This isn't light-hearted, Korpiklaani-style folk metal, though you may at times find yourself torn between the desire to bang your head and the desire to get up and dance a jig. Part of the album's theme, the idea of the Great Wheel, the seasonal cycle, is represented by periodic instrumental folk pieces, including the beautiful "Anagantios," and the songs that begin and end the album ("Samon" and "Elembivos," respectively). As a bonus, a short but sweet acoustic version of "Samon" appears at the end of the CD.

As with any follow-up, Slania will be frequently compared to its predecessor, Spirit. The fact that there has been so much debate over which CD is superior is an indication to me that there is no clear consensus among Eluveitie fans. Spirit has some really stunning moments, and is overall a very strong album, but it also has a few tracks that I don't enjoy very much. Slania, on the other hand, is consistently great all the way through. Perhaps it doesn't ever reach such highs as the last few minutes of "Tegernakô" from Spirit, but, when listening through the entire album, I enjoy it more overall than I do Spirit. The albums are quite similar, though, both featuring great production, songwriting, and performances. Both use melodies drawn from Celtic traditional songs (a fact that has annoyed some fans, which makes me snicker a little... apparently these people want "folk metal" but are offended if you actually use traditional folk tunes instead of simply making up tunes that sound like traditional tunes) and contain a somewhat equal ratio of metal to folk. With Slania, it appears to me that the folk elements are better blended with the metal elements, so much so that it may appear upon first listen that Eluveitie has diminished the folk on this album. They haven't, though. It's there. It's just integrated more with the metal elements.

This is a metal album that should not be overlooked this year. Those who would be tempted to avoid the album due to the term "melodic death metal" or even "Celtic music" should at least listen to some samples online. I am not much of a fan of any sort of death metal, melodic or otherwise, but yet I have been a big fan of Eluveitie since shortly after Spirit's release in 2006. Slania proves that the band has staying power, and I am looking forward to seeing what great works they will deliver in the future.

Album Review: Turisas - "The Varangian Way"

Artist: Turisas (Finland)
Album Title: The Varangian Way
Label: Century Media (U.S.)
Released: 2007

The Varangian Way refers to a trade route used by Norsemen, mainly in the 9th and 10th centuries, by which they reached the Byzantine Empire. The Varangians, as they came to be known, settled in Eastern Europe and are believed to be part of the ancestry of the Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians (the Rus'). The trade route they used, by way of a series of rivers and the Caspian sea, is the setting for the fictional story that unfolds in Turisas' second album.

The first Turisas album, Battle Metal, was beloved by many, but I mostly hated it. It sounded to me, even at the time when I was still new to the pagan metal genre, like a generic version of Moonsorrow. Take Viking metal, strip out all specific references to Vikings or paganism, and you end up with a widely-accessible, relatively inoffensive, but diluted product. It had a few songs that I enjoyed, such as "Among Ancestors," but I thought that the lyrics and the overall atmosphere of Battle Metal was cheesy and bland.

It was with reluctance that I bought the second Turisas album, The Varangian Way. It was hailed by many of the same people who loved Battle Metal, which didn't tell me anything about the album's alleged quality. Some even felt it less good than the debut. I wasn't really expecting much when the disc arrived in the mail, but, in this case, the album turned out far better than I had hoped, almost reaching my top five metal CD's of 2007.

Musically, Turisas treads much of the same water as they did on Battle Metal. This is very accessible, symphonic, and epic Viking metal. This is not a band you listen to for great guitar riffs, because the guitars are just kind of there. The high-quality symphonic arrangements (synthesized, but convincing) take the spotlight from the guitars and drive the music. This tends to give off the atmosphere of listening to a heavy metal musical about Vikings, which is something that I hope someone eventually attempts. There is no lead guitar on this album; every time you think you're hearing a guitar solo, you're actually hearing an electric violin. There's also an accordion, though I don't hear it that often. The vocals of Warlord Nygård range from extremely good clean singing to harsh vocals. He is frequently backed by a choir of singers, and by this I don't mean just the typical "Viking choir" that you find on many albums in this genre. I mean that, quite literally, there is a choir on the album, though they are mostly utilized towards the end of the disc, perhaps to build the epic quality of the album until it culminates in the incredible closer, "Miklagard Overture."

The Varangian Way surprised me by how much the band has matured since Battle Metal. The album is wonderfully paced, with no unnecessary or bland tracks to be found throughout its 43 minutes of playing time. Lyrically, most of the album is concerned with the dangers of the voyage over raging rivers and through storms. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, nobody picks up a sword to behead an enemy throughout the entire album. It's mostly about the journey and the discovery of new lands and cultures, and by the end of the album, as Nygård sings the lines, "Adventures lie ahead, many knots unraveled on my thread," I hope that this is not the last we will hear of Hakon the Bastard.

For those who are looking for an introduction to Viking metal, The Varangian Way is a great start. Even non-metal fans should not be put off by it, because many of the things that non-metal fans hate about heavy metal (wanky guitar solos, high-pitched vocals, etc.) are not to be found on this release. For this reason, however, perhaps it will be avoided or criticized by a number of metal fans. But who cares? They've got plenty of generic power metal bands with Halford-wannabe vocalists to listen to if they so wish. The overall impression I'm left with after listening to Turisas is: this is surprisingly tasteful for a metal album. I'm a metal fan, and am well-aware and accepting of its excesses, but The Varangian Way is an album I can recommend to almost anyone.

And, because it's on a relatively large- and well-distributed label like Century Media, there's a chance you'll actually be able to find it. That's always a plus.

A stunning album... Very highly recommended.

Album Review: Alkonost - "Песни Вечного Древа"

Artist: Alkonost (Russia)
Album Title: Песни Вечного Древа (Songs of the Eternal Oak)
Label: Metalism Records (Russia)
Released: 2007

The earliest Alkonost release (not including demos) was the cassette-only "album" Songs of the Eternal Oak in 2000. These songs were released on CD, along with the Spirit Tending To Revolt demo, as the eponymous Alkonost in 2002. The Russian folk metal band was a different beast back in the Songs of the Eternal Oak days, with their relatively raw production and black metal-ish male vocals, as opposed to the heavily-female-voiced, cleanly-produced folk metal that they began making with the release of Between the Worlds in 2004. The vocals of Alex "Nightbird" Solovyov didn't fully disappear (except on Between the Worlds' Russian-language re-recording, Межмирье... what was up with that?), instead alternating with the beautiful operatic vocals of Alena Pelevina, but I would imagine that, for fans of Alkonost's early releases, the transition between the Songs of the Eternal Oak material and Between the Worlds must have been jarring.

I'm not sure how many old-school Alkonost fans continued to follow the band during this transition period, but, for those who sometimes yearn for the old days while still enjoying the progressions and changes that Alkonost has made over the past several years, Песни Вечного Древа may be of interest to you. Though, now that I think about it, if you're one of these fans I just described, then you've probably owned this album for over a year, in which case this "review" is pretty much useless to you. So let me start again: for fans of Alkonost's newer albums who may not be familiar with the beginnings of this band, Песни Вечного Древа may be of interest to you.

For the most part, Песни Вечного Древа is a Russian language re-recording of the classic Songs of the Eternal Oak. They also include "День последний мой" (a new Russian language version of "My Last Day" from Spirit Tending To Revolt), which is a really nice version of one of my favorite Alkonost songs, and a song called "К родимой стороне," which may be a new recording of an old song, but, if it is, I'm not familiar with the original. This song is also unique in that it features guest vocals by Ilya from Svarga (Russia... not the Ukrainian NS pagan metal band) and Alexandr from Rarog (also from Russia, not the Polish band). Alexandr seems to get around, because he also did guest vocals on the album by Rodogor, which I should also get around to reviewing one of these days. [May 14th edit: He's also in Kalevala, who just released their debut. Must get my hands on that CD.]

How Песни Вечного Древа differs from every Alknost album released since 2004 is that the excellent harsh vocals of Alex "Nightbird" dominate the album. Alena only appears on a few songs, and even then her presence is minimal. I greatly enjoy her voice, but since these songs were originally done with only a male vocalist, it makes sense to put Alexey back in the spotlight for this recording. Because there's very little singing to balance out the growling, this gives the album a bit of a harder edge than other newer Alkonost albums, though the music and production is pretty much the same as what they've been doing recently. This may cause it to have more appeal for those who prefer the growled vocals, or those who feel that Alkonost (or at least newer Alkonost) is a bit too "wimpy." I have no idea, though. I enjoy both newer and older Alkonost, though I prefer the newer material because of Alena's voice and the modern production.

Though many if not all of these songs are more than 10 years old, and were written during the formative years of the band, they hold up rather well when compared to the songs that appear on The Path We've Never Made or Stone Heart Blood. The album has plenty of great moments, though it holds few surprises for those who own the original Songs of the Eternal Oak or Alkonost. And those who don't feel that one set of vocals can hold up the entire album (or who can't imagine Alkonost without Alena's vocals featured prominently) may be disappointed in the album. However, I think many fans will find this to their liking, as I have. I'm not exactly sure why Alkonost has chosen to re-record so many of their old songs with Russian lyrics, but in this case they've given us a newly-polished version of a great album, which I would imagine is good news to those who haven't warmed up to the more raw production and harsher sound of the original.

Perhaps it's not a "must" for every Alkonost fan, but Песни Вечного Древа is still a great listen and a worthwhile purchase for those of us who can't get enough of them. It's almost worth it just for the new version of "My Last Day."