A Power metal band from Romania. The band started its career in 2002. It started as a project from Bogdan Costea of a local gothic band called Interitus Dei. Bogdan then wanted to play his favorite genres like Heavy metal and rock. So after 2 months of recording they got their first album called ''The Scroll of Stone'' it has really beautiful story about a princess Alma tricked by a demon, she looses her soul and to win against the demon, to get her soul back she must find that scroll of stone! The album is full with power with adventure-like feeling. But they got back then a lack of promotion. In 2004 October their second album came out called Lightseeker , in France! You never taught that huh? Through Underclass Music. Then they had their first video called ''Bittersweet Nightshade''. Then they reached a peak, they were featured in Metallian and Rock Hard magazine. After through years they opened for symphonic and power metal bands. Then after it in 2007 it came out for my personal favorite album from them called Hereafter ,full of power and soaring vocals. They recorded it in Germany under AFM records, they made 2 videos with this album ''All waters have colour of drowning'' and ''Entangled''. Then Ana from the band toured with power metal bands Helloween, Gamma Ray, and Axxis on the Hellish Rock tour! Then they released two more albums.Their genre is really special, it has symphonic metal vocals, power metal guitars and keyboards and the drums have a strong sound with the bass, they have keyboard solos and the vocals are soaring, calling for more and more listening.
Tyrrhenian is a Guwahati (Assam) based six-piece Progressive Metal band originally formed in the year 2012 by Sam (vocalist) and Sahil (Bassist). But due to certain reasons the band was inactive until 2013, when the band reformed with new members joining them in their comeback gig and they did claim the best band of the night. The band likes experimenting their music by fusing progressive metal with melodic, metalcore and djent elements to give a unique sound. The band was co-headliners of Deatholic 2013. They were also finalist of Metal-O-Honour.
Tyrrhenian has already released their album intro “The Apocalypse”, which has received an amazingly good response from the listeners. They plan on releasing their first single “Innocent Elapse” by the 25th of this month, which has been made in memory of the Delhi rape case victim Damini and other women around the world who have been suffering from atrocities and violence. They also have two other compositions namely “Beyond the constilations” and “Invitation to bleed”, which they plan to release in their EP by the end of next year. Tyrrhenian is definitely a promising new band whom you’d surely want to catch up live.
The current members comprise of:
Sam Konjam Singha (Vocals), Sahil Ahmed (Guitars), Ebon Borah (Guitars), Abhigyan Kashyap (Bass), Aru Tisso (Keyboards/back vocals), Parikshit Baruah (Drums).
Tyrrhenian’s album intro “The Apocalypse” is available at:
ETHS the most popular, brutal, killer band from Marseille accepted to have an interview with us Metalhead Spotted. The band started with the name ''What's the Fuck !'' in 1996, it was also to Melting Point but after the final band member joined they named the band : Eths. They are touring always around France, Belgium, Switzerland and Portugal. Their label is Seasons of Mist. They had several past band members, since first creation the Guitar player and Drummer stayed. The Genre is Brutal death, core, alternative, nu all mixing creating a brutal horrific sound I would call it Horror Death Metal (no not associated with the Horror Punk or Metal). My personal rating for mastering death metal is a 9 out of 10!
Eths: Actually, it means nothing, we chose this name for that and esthetic reasons, we loved this letters together and this unknown word is only link to our music.
MS: Whatisthehistoryofthebandscreation ?
Eths: It starts from nothing, I don't even have a guitar but would make music and have a band, so I found a cheap guitar, partners and founded a teenage friends band with Candice and Greg, that became „eths“ when we changed our rythm section in 1999, little by little the band grew up with shows and recordings.
Eths: At first they were speechless when we arrived, „a young band with a girl screaming doing metal ?“,some laugh, but they were impressed by our female growls and our stage performances, we also had many good reviews with our first EP „Autopsie“.
Eths: We like many different styles, from jazz or classical to electronic musics, but we also can be influenced by arts, noises or nature. We all are listening metal but every one have their tastes.
Eths: The base is the human, what he can do, believe, ignore or never can be. We have our own interpretation of the lyrics but really like that everyone can find and understand what he want depending on his own experience. We always link the artwork to the album feeling in this way, to give some keys.
Eths: We'll publish the new album in late 2014 and go on european tour in 2015, we can't wait to comeback in those countries but also to discover new ones. MS: Andforlast , howdoyoudescribeyourgenre? Youmixdeathwithotherelements.
Eths: We prefer to say we play metal, on each album the medias give us a new genre but we love many kind of metal and try to add them all in our music, I guess the voice give this death and dark feeling we like too.
Thanks for your interview, hope to meet you for a show.
Basic information and more about the biography/tours: Www.eths.net
Precision, tenacity and barely controlled rage- reduced to its essence, this is Not Above Evil.
Formed in late 2009, Not Above Evil is a 4 -piece, melodic death metal band based in Manchester, UK. Drawing on many disparate influences the band produces its own highly idiosyncratic brand of metal, driven by a combination of technical ability and ruthless aggression. Since the release of their debut EP in February 2010, Not Above Evil has evolved into a sonic force that embodies the very best of the intensity and power that metal has to offer.
Of influences, a parallel can be drawn between the recent metal explosion in the southern states, Lamb of God and Mastodon first amongst them. No corner of the globe is left untouched by this international line up, with melodies from Gothenburg and snarling thrash fury courtesy of the Bay Area.
Their first full length record, Deification, self released in 2010, represents the bands ascension to previously unrealized heights of musicianship and artistry with over-the-top vocals and intricate guitar harmonies and 'The Transcendental Signified' EP, released in 2011, further cemented their position as 'ones to watch' in the scene.
The band's current line-up consists of vocalist and bassist Sideeq Mohammed, vocalist and guitarist David Gwynn, guitarist Damien Levette and drummer Daniel Mucs.
BRAND NEW EP 'Psychosis, Rage & Rapture' - Released August 2013 – available via notaboveevil.bandcamp.com
Diamonds Are Forever, great band name , isn't it? It was formed in Romania in a town called Cluj-Napoca. In 2011 they merged from two existing bands! In November they joined the Global Battle of the Bands Romania and they got to the finals. By December they released an EP which is really good and classy metalcore, titled ''Whom shall I fear''. Then then it came to an epic moment they released their first recorded music video called ''The eyes of blinded sorrow''. It was a great success, yea you cant believe it but a metalcore band got the second place with best release party on Metalhead.ro Awards!!! And, guess what! Also at the same ceremony the band won the first place for the Romanian Metal Newcomer 2011 award. They are great, really socializing with fans and their management etc. They played along with bands like the Veil of Maya which is a really good core band also called space metal and Suicide Silence. Cancer Bats, Superbutt, Subscribe, Give em Blood which are core bands, they played in Romania, Hungary, Ukraine and Moldova. They have tours now and had a great tour back then, the legacy is saved in a DVD entitled ''Bridges are Born'' what is a two DVD disc. One is a full live show and the other one is a documentary movie. In 2013 it was the first rock band documentary what hit the cinemas. Now this was their story, their legacy. What about the genre and discography and members? Lets get it on!. "Momaentum" is the band's second EP, a five song disk and a bonus track. After releasing last year a DVD (Live concert and documentary movie), the band wanted to release also the songs as an audio disk. Further more, the release came with their first lyric video for the song "The Industry". Well when I listened to their song then I taught: ''wow, hmmm I don't know'' and then as you listen more you start to get into the lyrics and you start to feel your rage rising against those who are jerks to you. It comes to slamming the bass and drums off, the lyrics the vocals extremely powerful like Eluveitie and Lamb of God, they make beat downs like real hardcore bands, they make the drum sound like it would be from Symphony X or Dream Theater, really strong riffs, you can mosh on it, make a wall of death or just headbang till you break your neck! Their band members:
Andrei Aron - Guitar Andrei Danci - Bass Dorin Marcu - Drums Istvan Pataki - Vocals Horia Cioflica - Vocals Mihai Vlad - Guitar
Their discography:
Whom Shall I Fear (EP 2011)
Face Me (Single 2012)
The Scar (Single 2012)
Bridges are Born (DVD 2012)
Momaentum (EP 2013)
For more updates and to keep in touch with the band, you can subscribe to their channels:
Escharified is a Death Metal Band from Hyderabad that was formed in March 2013 and their debut was at Disorganized 3, Bangalore.
Their love to Old School Death Metal made to form this band while Satyabrata (Vocals), Karthik (Drums) and Vishnu (Guitars) were jamming together, soon they introduced Sandeep on Bass.
In a recent interaction with them they quoted "We want to portray some forgotten moments and important events of India's history which this generation tends to overlook. And politically we want to showcase the brutality inflicted upon the masses over the year. Not just in India but other parts of the world too."They were influenced by Swedish, Florida and Finnish Death Metal. Their second gig at Septic Progression Tour 2 was an introduction to Hyderabad Metal Scene and all I can say was "Dude! when are they playing again!" Although it's just their second one, they showcased themselves as Professionals! And these guys need some boost, so people go and check them out!
Acts of Tragedy influenced by metalcore , progressive , groove metal and math core , are a band formed in 2005 under the name Slivers. The band itself found stability in 2013 and named themselves Acts of Tragedy. They are making now an EP with the participation of drummer Kevin Talley ( Dying Fetus, Mysery Index, Chimaira ) an excellent drummer. When you first hear them you think , hey what is this ? And then you think this is not bad and then this is really good , its because it is progressive with core , one time it comes to slamming drums and then the riffs with clear voice and then it goes to slam with the bass and the false chords come in (what you can understand clearly).
How much kind of musical genres and bands I listened this band reminds me on ETHS . The groovy thing would be from Lamb of God or Pantera. I cant say that its so much core as Trivium but it would be close to Parkway Drive. You cant get much from this bands information , it has been well I could say it was made this year because they are stable now. Reverbnation is boosting them , they don't have much publicity , but they need , so people go and check them. I highly recommend the song ''What Remains'' where they feat. Kevin Talley.
Solar Deity is a Mumbai-based satanic black metal band that was formed in 2012, famous in the underground extreme metal scene for playing evil and devastating music.
The band started releasing albums as a two-member studio project with Aditya Mehta on vocals/guitar/bass and Yash Pathak on drums, and soon introduced Animesh Asmo Das on bass and Akash Shah on lead guitar.. They are notorious for performing live rituals during their concerts.
The band members listen to variety of music.. They are the fans of Slayer, Burzum, Deicide and Tiamat..
"All we care about is making great songs, and true music comes from within. Our music should always sound like the soundtrack to the end of this world " says Aditya.
The band Solar Deity has released two albums — In The Name Of Satan and The Darkness Of Being — as well as the single Snowless.. Unlike other Indian metal bands, they have recorded and released the albums before doing live gigs....
After years of playing brutal death metal in the band Exhumation, Yash and he, decided to make truly evil music that would have no boundaries.. Thus, Solar Deity was born!.. Their songs thrive on lyrical melody.
Honor Vishnu and all the gods in the Pantheon ! Kartikeya Death Metal band from Moscow . Well guys , we had folk and power metal suggestions , now we go a bit heavier with some other lyrical themes and Death Metal . Kartikeya is the god of war in the Hindu Pantheon . Now we got its name and location , lets go on to the story , they were once Velial from 2004 - 2005 but they had not so great success as Kartikeya, now since 2005 they are Kartikeya and have 2 released ass-kicking albums . I listened to Mahayuga and the album is from 2010 .
My first impressions were a bit odd but I listened to 5 songs and I fell in love in that band . It is experimental , brutal riffs , blasts , clear and growling vocals . Some people call it Vedic or Hindu metal . It has Indian folk elements in it , with old classic Indian instruments and sometimes Violins . The lyrics are not long but not short and is always about Hindu gods and myths . For me the best song is Neverborn where he sings in clear voice and you can feel power in your veins . The greatest lyrics in the album was the Fields of Kurukshetra which was a battlefield in the Mahabharata . Label : Grailight Productions .
Now the members , they had many past members however it would take a lifetime to line them up , however Andrew Ischenko , legendery drummer ( drummed in around 50 bands ) was with them from 2007 till 2010. Chela Harper entered the band this year .The current members are : Roman ''Arsafes'' Iskorostenskiy ( Guitars , Vocals , Keyboards , Ethnic instruments , Wardrums , Drums ) Dimitry ''Drevo'' Sorokin ( Percussion ) Alexandr Miroshnichenko ( Drums ) Chela Harper ( Guitars , Back vocals ) Similar artists to this brutal mantra band are Rudra , Arkan and Shturm . Go meditate like a metalhead . Have a nice day and honor your gods , especially the gods of war . For more info about tours and the band: http://kartikeya.bandcamp.com/ ... Namaste !
You never heard about this , but actually this is a new genre and its Scottish Folk Metal , how awesome is that ? Get your whiskey , get your skirt and blow your bagpipe . Well folks , this is a new band for you and I also suggest thrashers to check it because they sometimes use that element also . Lyrical themes are about battles mostly . However if you didn't hear them and if you are a Scott then I suggest you go and buy the album . You say now : '' Bagpipes sound awkward '' well dude , nope . Skiltron uses the bagpipes different as you saw in TV or on Scottish folk concerts and they also use flutes . The band is actually Argentine , and the name Skiltron derives from a variation of the world schiltron , a formation used by the Scottish during the Wars of Independence , the band was established in 2004 . In 2006 the album : The Clans have United came out by Underground Symphony record label . The album is classic , very challenging to make a cover band . And then it came to '' Beheading the Liars '' in 2008 and in this year 2013 September 16th they released Into The Battleground ... I love it , I love them . One of the best folk metal bands which I ever heard . Also if you are a paganist , they make themes about that too . However my favorite album is from 2010 '' The Highland Way '' . They say Elvenking and Triddana is also similar to this band .
2 members left the band so they are now a trio , members : Matias Pena ( Drums ) Emilio Suoto ( Guitars , Mandolin , Bouzouki ) Ignacio Lopez ( Bass ) However , live they have 2 more performers , since 2012 , they are only current live members . Callum Kirk ( Bagpipes ) Tony Thurlow ( Vocals ) And Skiltrons fan base is more from Europe then actually from Argentina . Hey guys , please share the experience , this is really a band what needs more publicity and needs more fans. And go to concerts ! For more information here - RevölutÃon
Yes , you may not know this band . BUT !!! As to those who love power metal you would surely love this band it remembers to old school power metal . Just like old Hammerfall , Helloween or Blind Guardian they mastered the power metal , also they use speed metal elements , sounds perfectly . What I want ? Well I don't just love famous bands or overrated ones . Actually I want to highlight bands which Need to be famous.
Well now you surely ask : '' Why the hell would I know some underrated band ? '' The answer is that every band started like that . Seriously Bands need publicity and this world deserves more Metal and more Power . Alpha Tiger has similar lyrical themes to Helloween and Forever Storm . They were once Satin Black from 2007 - 2011 but they broke and they reunited in 2011 again . Only they changed the drummer: Axel Patzold was in Satin Black once, but from the band Painful Existence David Schleif hopped in and is now the drummer of Alpha Tiger . So , the members are :
Dirk Frei ( Bass )
David Schleif ( Drummer )
Alexander Backasch ( Guitars )
Peter Langforth ( Guitars )
and Stephan '' Heiko '' Dietrich ( Vocals )
They had two albums : Man or Machine from 2011 which is really good old school like power metal , and I enjoyed it , and said : Hey , this is an ass-kicking band .
And the other one is from this year January 28th they released Beneath the Surface . Well the album has a good intro and very impressive power metal , can say also in some songs melodic power metal or speed metal . It made me an eargasm . Like really it was worth to listen to it . They made also a music videos, the most favorite is From Outer Space . So now have a chill and check this awesome band .
Formed in 2004, old school death metallers, “Warmaster”, claimed a strong position in the Dutch extreme metal scene after just one demo. Their first release, “First War”, gave them the opportunity to tour outside the country, receiving positive response through their force and delivery on stage. Just like their name indicates, as well as their material and lyrical content, war is the main subject for these guys, also, the name of the 2nd album, “The End of Humanity”, speaks for itself.
“Massive Kill Capacity” is the intro song, it perfectly expresses the image of a war zone – soldiers reporting in, while in the background, a part of the graveyard symphony (if I’m not mistaking) is present. And so the ruckus begins with the 2nd track, “Nuclear Warfare”, a very rough and powerful sound from the guitars, the riffs are outrageously sharp and heavy while the vocals beautifully stick to the old school death metal roots.
The great thing about this album is that it gets more and more aggressive ‘n’ savage from one song to another; if you already liked the first two, trust me, you won’t get bored or be disappointed when you check out “Deadly Artillery” and “Death Factory”. I’m sure this release will propel “Warmaster” to a new level in the death metal scene. Metaphorically speaking, this band has that kind of raw sound and strength in their music that fights it’s way to your eardrums and kicks the shit out ‘em.
Gonna jump the list a little bit and talk about my favorite song from the album. Believe it or not, it was pretty hard to pick but I’ll say “Barbarians” – it begins with some cool bass lines and then “the anthem of going apeshit” begins! Once again, the name speaks for itself, the song is very savage, primitive and brutal!
One and only ONE thing comes to mind every time I listen to this track and that’s WALL OF FUCKING DEATH!
No wonder they received so much positive feedback after their tours and gigs. And you bet your ass that was ancient history, when “The End of Humanity” will come out and be supported onstage, it’s definitely gonna be war!
The one thing I’m pissed about is that I suck at Dutch! And that’s because “Medestrijders Voor Volk En Vaderland” (the 10th track) brings out another savage display and it would be cool for me to know the lyrics, but in this case, headbanging will just be enough. Last but damn right not least, “Destroyer of Worlds”, I consider to be their most technical track. Mr. van der Ree destroys with that double pedal, while the guitars and vocals remain outstanding.
Well I’m out of superlatives at this moment, but on the other hand, this album doesn’t need spicy words, it needs listeners. And I’d recommend this release to all old school death metal fans. I personally would love to destroy myself in a pit at a Warmaster gig! Hailz [9]
Credits to:
Destructive Music - http://destructive-music.com/ ; https://www.facebook.com/DestructiveMusic
Although highly unfriendly to the lazy typing of English reviewers, Mörkö’s ‘Itsenänimeävä’ is also challenging in exactly the way you want it to be. From start to finish, this is an uncompromising, unsettling album that really forces the listener to reconceptualise what “black metal” means to them.
Right from the start, you know this won’t be your usual trip down the alleys of so-called primitive metal. ‘Ruumis Loi Itsensä Omaksi Kuvakseen’ kicks things off with a spoken-word passage, with a slight natural growl to the vocals, before a sliding bassline and gritty, bitter guitars swirl into the picture like corrupt winds. The music here is deeply hypnotic and repetitive yet fearfully intense, like a nightmare you can’t awaken from. Mörkö are hugely adept at layering their music. The visceral booming tom patterns and sinister speech serve as the front vanguard of the low end, with sinuous, minimal basslines providing a shadow lurking behind them. Without having any idea what the vocals are on about, I can still gauge the tone amid feedback and clattering riffs as completely and utterly morbid. Something in the very essence of intonation, unfettered by the words’ meaning, just oozes bleakness. It’s all rather avant-garde, but not in the “pretentious wanker” sense. Instead of annoyance, you feel your ears and brain being pushed and pulled and reconfigured in an attempt to really get what is going on here, and whether anyone can ever be entirely successful is up for debate, as the tempos and soundscapes morph and deliquesce in bizarre, otherworldly ways both brutal and languidly morbid. The frenetic squalls of feedback and scrabbling guitars is perhaps a little more de rigeur in the genre, and it fades out and back into ‘Alhainen Liejukoira’, which initially does sound like a rather avant-garde yet recognisably black metal with its speed-picked, atonal riffs and rapid, tinny percussion. Then, the vocals start. Choral vocals. Disharmonious, discordant, yet singular in their intent. Beautifully, cruelly devised and delivered with some utter bestial monstrosity that comes from somewhere even deeper than the very marrow of the bone and the redness of blood. My boyfriend told me a story about his first experience of early Darkthrone, and how he felt genuinely pitched out of the realms of his experience of what music is, and what “fucked up” sounds like. Yes. This is it.
Surging into malevolent, slowly fluctuating basslines and waltzing drums from this muted cacophony from the monastery of the ulterior into minimalistic low-end fear and back again, this track plays out like the most fearful bad dream you have ever experienced. Moments of strummed, soft, almost jazz-like guitar tones dominate the latter passages, with the chilling shadow of the speed-picked opening riff playing through like the shadow of Black Shuck at winter crossroads.
Once again, this tone segues into the almost fourteen-minute ‘Kosmoksen Huhmareessa’, as it opens with an elegant, analogue-glacial waltz from the otherworld into a section similar to the opening track. Rolling toms and a guttural tremolo guitar accompany the spoken-word invocations of dread that the vocal conjure from somewhere beyond the human vocal chords. This climactic chaos mounts and mounts, until the moment it simply ceases to be. From this cathartic moment, the listener is immersed into the mesmeric, dreamlike midsection-finale. One single riff, barely a riff at all. The forlorn ghost of a much greater, much fiercer force. Frost-cold teeth and barbed wire in materials beyond the ken of our senses encircle this riff, as it builds and dips in intensity, with subtle modulations of distortion and layering. It does drag on for a while (my sole gripe concerning this record), but if you were to listen to this at night alone, it could cause hallucinations and extrasensory voyages in and as of itself. Then the finale ‘Nesteen Luo’ brings us back to the visceral. Mirroring ‘Alhainen Liejukoira’ in its choral vocals, ‘Nesteen Luo’ however includes a much more melodic feel, with its twanging, mutant bass bringing a certain groove to the track that almost defies comprehension, but is undeniably there. Then, out of nowhere comes a juddering leap into what could almost be a heavy metal breakdown via the route of avant-garde black metal, with discords and ever-so-slightly off-kilter rhythms delivered in a slamming, confrontational manner. In some ways, this is the most “accessible” track on the album, despite both the hellish choral vocals and the spoken-word horrors. And yet even here, the album is challenging your own expectations. Shifting from the recognisable to the utterly unknown to the contextually-familiar without a second’s faltering, this track keeps up the high standards set by this album and brings them to a slow, evil-sounding conclusion that leaves you utterly shellshocked.
I won’t lie. ‘Itsensänimeävä’ is difficult. Very difficult. You won’t be playing it to family and friends, or to serenade lovers, or to feel good about things. But you will play it. And you will listen. Again and again and again. And each time, you’ll find new shades and dimensions in it. Shades and dimensions that really make you reconsider what music means, and what human creativity is capable of.
[9] by Katie Haley-Halinski
Credits to:
Destructive Music - http://destructive-music.com/ ; https://www.facebook.com/DestructiveMusic
Just as the official announcement came through earlier this week, many metalheads, nationwide, are already talking about it, and proudly salute the effort of the two heavyweights of the Romanian underground music scene – Cap De Craniu & Breathelast, both hailing from the capital city of Bucharest, will soon release a split album entitled “Split it out” via Metalfan Records Division, this fall.
I honestly cannot think of many bands that won so much respect and appreciation in such short period of existence. Formed in 2010, Post Hardcore act Breathelast never seem to fail to put up an awesome show everytime they perform and also, never seem to fail in showing the reason why so many respect them offstage – these guys are true supporters of the scene, passionate and determined with their music.
Formed in 2007, with an EP (“First EP for a Surgery” – 2007), a full length (“I’ll Kill If I Live” – 2012) and numerous sensational live displays under their belt, probably the top dogs of the Romanian deathcore scene so far – Cap De Craniu don’t show any signs that they might go astray from a growing path.
It should be known that although CDC faced tough times back in ’11, when 3 members quit the band, the two brothers remaining, Calin (guitars) andRazvan (drums) put together a new line-up, adding Paul Nicolae as bassist and two vocalists - Vicentiu Busuioc and Mihai Ionescu, perfectly filling the void left by Dragos Drunea.
Shaman is the debut album from Sweden’s Eldkraft, a group who attempt to unite the ancient and mystic with the epic and contemporary. Their conceptual influences are Norse mythology and pagan rituals, especially those concerned with transition, growth and spiritual journeys. Their sound, however, does not have the folksy old-fashioned quality that one might expect; instead, they have gone for modern production and complex instrumentation that makes them sound considerably more grand and expansive than one would expect from a three-piece. This combines to make Shaman a strong and sometimes startling debut.
The album is not without flaws. J. Sandin, who performs all of the vocals, is not consistent in his performance, and some of the layering choices are odd. The vocals are the one element of the album that sound over-produced. Some vocal layers are too distant while others are brought too starkly to the fore, and sometimes the way the different vocal parts are folded together can sometimes be jarring. There are other moments where is works well, and most often when the vocals are left alone, Sandin’s voice can stand on its own just fine (his snarls are especially fine). This indicates a bit of nervousness, and a cooler head and looser reign will produce better results in the future.
Another major criticism I have of Shaman is it’s pacing and length. At a towering 55 minutes, the album is undeniably excessive, and while there is no single song that stands out as obviously the weakest, some judicious cutting would have served the album well. The moody tone of many of the songs and mid-tempo, even woozy pacing can also make the album drag.
When Shaman is at it’s most stirring, it is also its strongest. “Fate’s Door” is driven forward by a powerful march and military drumming, making is a great track to pump a fist along to. “Modor liv til grav” is another excellent example of a song that’s emotive, even soulful, but constantly pressing forward and full of energy. The blackened elements on this song are also strong, adding a crisper tone and emotional bleakness that suits the album well.
The final track, “Rimthurs,” is a bit out of place: an atmospheric track composed of deep, gutteral chanting and ambient effects, it stands out on the rest of the album and belies the clean, modern aesthetic of a lot of the songs. While it certainly wouldn’t be out of place on most pagan or Viking metal albums, it does go against the aesthetic that Eldkraft have established for most of the album.
There is a lot to pick apart on Eldkraft‘s debut, Shaman, but in this case it is an example nitpicking out of affection. There is a lot of potential here for a unique approach to a familiar aesthetic, and little would make me happier than watching this band continue to innovate and thrive. With stricter, more brutal editing, a leaner album, and additional creative confidence, I suspect their next album will be a much more polished gem to Shaman’s rich yet rough ore
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The band members listen to variety of music.. They are the fans of Slayer, Burzum, Deicide and Tiamat.. 
Formed in 2004, old school death metallers, “Warmaster”, claimed a strong position in the Dutch extreme metal scene after just one demo. Their first release, “First War”, gave them the opportunity to tour outside the country, receiving positive response through their force and delivery on stage. Just like their name indicates, as well as their material and lyrical content, war is the main subject for these guys, also, the name of the 2nd album, “The End of Humanity”, speaks for itself.
Although highly unfriendly to the lazy typing of English reviewers, Mörkö’s ‘Itsenänimeävä’ is also challenging in exactly the way you want it to be. From start to finish, this is an uncompromising, unsettling album that really forces the listener to reconceptualise what “black metal” means to them.
