Power of Metal.dk Review

Baldrs Draumar
Aldgillissoan
Rating
Style: Folk Viking Metal
Release date: 18 April, 2015
Playing time: 53:00
 


We already have Heidevolk in the Netherlands, but within a stones throw from my town there is another (Frisian) folk/viking Metal combo that sounds a tad heavier and uses more harsh vocals. Besides that they use the Frisian language which I also use at home. Sure there are some ancient words we never use in common converstations, but that is only adding more authenticy to the music.

After 2 EP's and one full length, this is the second complete album. A lot of songs have lyrics about the Frisian history about king Radbod (Redbad in Frisian) who was in charge around 680- 719 AD. Back then his kingdom reached from what we now call the provence Zeeland following the coast (aprox 50- 80 miles wide) to almost up to Bremen. I will not bore you with more history lessons or lyrical themes any longer, lets talk about music.

After a short intro, the song "Koppen Yn 'e Mist" (Heads In the Fog) opens aggressive and fast in a kind of Dimmu Borgir way. After a real old school heavy metal riff, the track "Wolvetiid" fires away in the same tempo, but the song has more clean vocals also. The music of the band is for a very big part a lot heavier than a lot of other folk metal bands. The growls and grunts also see to that, but with "Fredou" and "Hadagrims Fertriet" they wrote two soft songs, which will not be the favorites of those who only want in heavy.

Personally I think it just makes the difference here, a little rest in between the heavy songs makes the heavy tracks even sound better. "Fredou" is a kind of folk shanty with accoustic guitar and accordion, accompanied by gang shouting. "Hadagrims Fertriet" is a ballad with clean singing and again accoustic guitar. In between there are some real heavy (death) metal tracks like "In Skym Yn It Tsjuster" with excellent vocals and some subtle keyboards in the back, a surprising softer part in the middle and an exalleration afterwards. "Keningsting" is a slower groovier track with a nice almost marching rhytmn. "Stoarm Oer de Streamen" is a typical heavy folk metal track which sounds heavy but also very catchy because of the melodic accordeon parts and the galloping rhytmn.

Throughout the entire album the band succeeds in creating the right atmosphere by adding the correct non typical metal instruments at the right time. On top of that the guitars have nice melodic leads throughout most of the songs and the production is very professional. This is one of the better bands in the folk (death) metal genre, this music never dies! Fryslân Boppe..


Tracklist
01. Iselhiem
02.
Koppen Yn 'e Mist
03.
Wolvetiid
04.
Fredou
05.
Yn 'e Meahal
06.
In Skym Yn It Tsjuster
07.
Keningsting
08.
By Ty en Thuner
09.
Hel As Himmel
10.
Stoarm Oer de Streamen
11.
Ûnder It Skyld
12. Hadagrims Fertriet
Label: Mighty Music
Distribution: Target (Denmark)
Artwork rating:  
Reviewed by: Reinier de Vries
Date: 14 April, 2015
Website: http://www.baldrsdraumar.com