ALBUM REVIEW: Fen - "Winter"

By: Daniel Jackson

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 10/03/2017
Label: Code666 Records

When this album is on fire, which is often, it’s absolutely some of the best atmospheric black metal you’ll hear this year. While the build to those big moments can be over-stretched, the payoff is absolutely worth the wait.  But even when accounting for its biggest flaw, I believe that ‘Winter’ will end up as one of the year's best albums. There’s simply too much fantastic material here to be denied.  

‘Winter’ CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. I (Pathway)

2. II (Penance)

3. III (Fear)

4. IV (Interment)

5. V (Death)

6. VI (Sight)

The Review:

I hate to start on a dour note for an album I really enjoy, but let’s get this out of the way: 75 minutes is too long for an album by any artist. That goes for my favorite bands of all time too. You can say that opinion owes to a lack of an attention span, or that I don’t respect the album format or whatever you’d like. But even a band like Enslaved, who work in a similar soundscape in balancing progressive and black metal components, generally keep their albums between 50 and 60 minutes. I would go so far as to say that there hasn’t ever been an album this long that wouldn’t be well-served by being made shorter.

With all of that said, while there is definitely some filler here, the majority of ‘Winter’is made up of stunning, vital, and beautiful music. That the album is hurt slightly by its runtime shouldn’t dissuade you from giving it a fair shot as it does more than earn it. When this album is on fire, which is often, it’s absolutely some of the best atmospheric black metal you’ll hear this year. While the build to those big moments can be over-stretched, the payoff is absolutely worth the wait.

In what is something of a funny coincidence, the most well-paced song on the album may be the 17 minute opening track; the longest on the album. The longer build works here at the introduction, with reverb-drenched guitars building to beautiful clean guitar work and dreary but well-suited singing. Finally the song gets its first proper big moment as the guitars explode and the toms are pounded thunderously setting the tone for the next several minutes. Over time, the song ebbs and flows between heavy atmosphere, reserved and tasteful technical displays and bleaker delicate moments. ‘Winter’ is an album of emotional peaks and valleys, and Fen excels on both of those levels.

This brings us to another point worth exploring: Fen’s use of prog elements throughout the album. This is a difficult mix to pull off in an extreme metal context, or at least it’s difficult to do in an interesting way. All too frequently, bands will throw those elements into a song without considering the emotional tone of the rest of the music, which means there can be a major disconnect during those prog-centric moments. Fen does this better than anyone outside of maybe Enslaved on “Mardraum”, and even then it’s close. The band have such a firm sense of self and musical identity that their need to explore new sounds never comes at the cost of consistency.

While I do believe Fen have indulged themselves a bit too much here, and I believe the album would benefit from a harsher editing process, there’s no denying that Fen are at their absolute best on ‘Winter’. There is no such thing as a flawless album, and this one is no exception. But even when accounting for its biggest flaw, I believe that ‘Winter’ will end up as one of the year's best albums. There’s simply too much fantastic material here to be denied.

“Winter” is available on CD/LP copy here and digitally here

FFO: Agalloch, Alcest, Altar of Plagues, Drudkh

Band info: Facebook || bandcamp

ALBUM REVIEW: Drudkh / Grift - “Betrayed By The Sun / Hägringar” (Split)

By: Conor O’Dea

Album Type: Split

Date Released:16/09/2016

Label: Season of Mist |

Underground Activities

I cannot but recommend the album for fans of Drudkh. The Grift tracks are in no way bad, they just do not compare to the masterful first half of the collaboration.

“Betrayed By The Sun / Hägringar” DD//LP track listing:

Side A:

1). DRUDKH Його двадцять четверта весна (His Twenty-Fourth Spring)

2). DRUDKH Осінь в сепії (Autumn in Sepia)  

Side B:

3). GRIFT Källan (The Source)

4). GRIFT Cirkeln (The Circle)

The Review:

Splits are, by their very nature, a risky venture. Like any chimera or hybrid, you can end up with a monstrosity or abomination or something which is better than the sum of the parts. The best splits, ironically, are those that do not actually evoke the sense of being split; they form something cohesive and coherent. Recent examples would include joint efforts by Torrid Husk/End and the just-released Selvans/Downfall of Nur collaboration.  In a sense, this makes split albums a little bit tricky to review because the metrics become muddy: are we looking at a series of discrete tracks? Side A and Side B of a vinyl release? Or are we evaluating the album on how it sounds from beginning to end? With those disclaimers in mind, let's take a look at the collaboration by the legendary Drudkh and relative newcomer Grift.

First things first: there is little doubt to my mind that Drudkh is at the peak of their powers in this split. “His Twenty Fourth Spring” is probably my favourite track of theirs since 2006's “When the Flame Turns to Ashes”. Everything in both tracks delivers an intense, aggressive auditory experience with virtuoso performance and production. It is damn fine work and very promising for the next full-length after the somewhat disappointing “A Furrow Cut Short”. There is a sense of reinvigoration as opposed to reinvention here, as if Drudkh have found new blood for the wells from which they draw their music 

The following two tracks by Grift present an interesting but not necessarily good contrast to Drudkh. In isolation, these two tracks are competent, but are frankly not nearly as good as Erik's work on Syner, nor are they as compositionally compatible with the first half of the split. Raw production, shrieking vocals, slower, folk inflected rhythm and pace; all are jarringly set against the much smoother sounder Drudkhsong. I am a fan of Grift, whom I see as having immense potential, but am not convinced that this paring served either band well. There is also the feeling of an excellent band putting out some of their best work to date set against some less-than-stellar material by a newer artist. 

These criticisms of the paring and some of its weaknesses aside, I cannot but recommend the album for fans of Drudkh. And to be fair: the Grifttracks are in no way bad, they just do not compare to the masterful first half of the collaboration. 

“Betrayed By The Sun / Hägringar” is available here

Band info: Drudkh: bandcamp|| facebook|| Grift: bandcamp || facebook

FFO: Burzum, Hate Forest, Arfsynd, Saiva

ALBUM REVIEW: Winterfylleth - “The Dark Hereafter”

By: Richard Maw
 
Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 30/09/2016
Label: Candlelight Records |
Spinefarm Records

 

 

With only five tracks, the band have placed all their energy into creating an album of depth without any meandering. The real centrepiece of this album is “Green Cathedral”, though. Indeed it is as good a piece of music as you will hear this year.  “The Dark Hereafter” marks Winterfylleth's continuing trend of excellent albums, Superb and atmospheric stuff- savour it.

 

“The Dark Hereafter” CD//DD//LP track listing:

 

1). The Dark Hereafter
2). Pariah's Path
3). Ensigns of Victory
4). Green Cathedral
5). Led Astray in the Forest Dark

 

The Review:

 

Winterfylleth are certainly my favourite UK black metal outfit. They return here with an album that takes in both focused blasts of darkness and epic sprawling soundscapes. With only five tracks, the band has placed all their energy into creating an album of depth without any meandering. The band sticks to the task at hand and make every second count.

 

The rather ferocious opening title track recalls more Scandinavian outfits, while the familiar “Pariah's Path” is given an extra something here. Naturally, this being a Winterfylleth release, the record is best digested through headphones and whilst undertaking some kind of journey (preferably in an area of natural beauty) but it works fantastically as a mood piece played on my front room stereo and much like its predecessors it takes you on a  journey even if you don't set foot outside.

 

“Ensigns of Victory” is a stirring and triumphant sounding track, utilising time changes aplenty and a surprising dynamic range (not easy in BM). The real centrepiece of this album is “Green Cathedral”, though. As good a piece of music as you will hear this year and encapsulating all that is great about the band and all that is great about nature- while highlighting how it gets further away from many of us in our daily lives. The track is epic in scope and performance and it crystallises the bands raison d'etre beautifully. It shifts sounds and moods to great effect and is a perfect soundtrack to the coming changing seasons.

 

“Led Astray in the Forest Dark”  (a cover of Ulver's "Capitel I: I Troldskog Faren Vild") closes this impressive set with some interesting and effective choral type vocals and an excellent mix allowing the bass to shine through. Overall, this marks Winterfylleth's continuing trend of excellent albums- now at number five, discounting the three CD box set of a year or so past. Superb and atmospheric stuff- savour it.

 

“The Dark Hereafter” is available here

 

Band info: bandcamp|| facebook

 

FFO:Wodensthrone, Drudkh, Fen, Wolves in the Throne Room