Live recordings are in my view bloody difficult to review. The factors that make the live concert fantastic are not present when you sit there in your own livingroom in your comfy chair, completely in control of the sound level and everything around you.

Only when you've seen the band live, you know what they stand for, and not just what a clever cameraman and producer has done for them.

In the case of Saltatio Mortis, I have been there. And it is a fond memory of a late-night gig on the WET stage at Wacken, a slightly muddy night, but one that was made very pleasant by the tunes of Saltatio Mortis. Saltatio Mortis are not as big as their fellow Germans In Extremo, but they definitely have a crowd and the entertainment factor is almost just as high.

They throw French, German, English and Scandinavian folklore and Middle Ages stories into one big pan and fry it up  - adding a rock sauce to put in that extra flavour. The result is not always pretty, but it IS entertaining and there's not much else to do than just dance and enjoy it.

This is not Live After Death or Rush's Live in Rio, but it's a fine offer for someone who wants an introduction to one of the many subgenres of metal and hardrock. Well-worth a listen.