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Review Summary: An epic effort worth your full attention I'd like to say this review is from completely unbiased ears but in a world ripe with subjectivity (practically a given in any human's "human nature"), I will most definitely come off sounding like a Wilderun fanboy. And as of right now, I most definitely am as this is one of the most epic (in both scope and admiration based off of teenage-lingo) albums I have ever had the pleasure to experience. This is not an album to be taken sporadically. For greatest effect, one needs to sit down and let it all in at once.
I was fortunate enough to discover the band, Wilderun, roughly 4 hours after this album aired on Bandcamp. Having only heard one folk-metal album prior to this, it seemed like a great opportunity to expand my limited, folk-sey repertoire. I sat down, cracked open a jar of Nutella (I see you judging me, random citizen of the internet) and let it rip. This album, in short, is the good-looking, academic-yet-athletic god-child of Opeth and Skyrim. The opening track pulls you in with a couple of simple, yet effective motifs that are built upon with stringed instruments of all sorts from violins to mandolins. The effect is quite ethereal.
The 4 tracks that proceed are in a sense, one track entitled Ash Memory. There are dips, peaks and a production job so fantastic that not a single detail can be missed, yet more and more details will be found after multiple listens. Everything is clean, and the DR is wide enough to hit you in the gut like a truck in choruses, but never so wide that your ears bleed after suspecting there was a problem with your earphones as you tried increasing the volume. This is most evident in these 4 tracks as the following songs carry their own, individual themes (some being very anthem-like and metal focused such as The Garden Of Fire or the acoustic-based style of Linger) .
In terms of musicality, the craftsmanship is almost without fault. For the most part, this album is very guitar driven but every instrument (including the bass, drums AND strings) has it's moments of pure brilliance. The vocal performance is truly top-tier; an immense mix of theatrical soaring and deathly growls. Wilderun have found a perfect balance between complex and controlled, never allowing technical skill to overthrow the themes of the songs, yet still fitting in riffs, rhythms and oddities that will leave you astounded.
It is in the pure cohesiveness of this album where it shines. Every single track is so distinctive and vibrant, yet you never feel as if you have left the mystical world that Sleep at the Edge of the Earth presents. This album will take you over mountains, through the darkest of caves and leave you soaring, craving another adventure. Every song in this album was crafted with love, time, pain, and care. Should Wilderun continue leaving their listeners in as much awe and wonder in future, surely a truly great band would be on our hands. I have no doubt this will stay as my favourite album of 2015; the brief time I have owned it has placed it among my favourites of all time.
And So Opens The Earth would be the track to check out first if this perks your curiosity as it encapsulates the ideas and themes presented by the album.
| other reviews of this album |
Dizchu (4.5)
A welcome change of pace from the countless Viking-themed bands that populate the folk metal genre....
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"one of the most epic (in both scope and admiration based off of teenage-lingo) albums I have ever had the pleasure to experience. "
Ensiferum, Wintersun, Saor... heck, even Finntroll pwn this in terms of "epicness."
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Equilibrium > all of those and this in epicness tbh.
As for the review, it's pretty well written, maybe next time limit the use of 1st person, remove unecessary comments about objectivity and how you discovered the album. Focus on the music and band themselves a little more and keep it concise. And change that summary too for sure. You're on your way though man, keep it up.
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Paras 3, 4, and 5 are how you want to whole review to read. Paragraph 1 is redundant and 2 could be tweaked to make it less personal, as Scuro mentions above, limit 'I'. For a first though man it's a decent review, keep it going.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
I like this album a great deal and all, but it's not the best that folk/symphonic metal has to offer. For me it's up there, but it's not quite on the same level as say, Moonsorrow (highly recommended if you're new to the genre).
It kinda occupies the space between Moonsorrow/Agalloch/Saor and the more campy (but not unenjoyable) bands like Turisas, Ensiferum and Wintersun.
The review itself is quite nicely written in terms of vocabulary and flow, the main thing I disagree with here is your opinion and the excessive enthusiasm. You're a good writer and you evoke some nice imagery, but it doesn't really describe the sound of the album to me.
Keep it up though, as I said, you have a good grasp of English and it was fun to read.
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Equilibrium > all of those
For sure. Equilibrium is so ridiculously over-the-top cheesily epic that it has a tendency to burn me out, though, which the other bands don't really suffer from as much. Sagas is still one of my few 4.5's though.
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Yeah I understand that completely. They found a good balance on Erdentempel though, such a good album.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Erdentempel slams. It might be exhausting but it's so much fun that I can forgive it.
| | | Album Rating: 5.0
Thanks for the feedback, guys! Will definitely be checking out the recommendations, should allow me to make a stronger judgement on the folk-metal scene xD
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That's cool man, I highly recommend Eluveitie too, one of the best bands in the genre imo, also Tyr if you want a metal band with a folk-influenced feel but without all the flutes and fiddles.
| | | Album Rating: 5.0
Gone and listened to a heck of a lot of folk records and atmospheric albums. Not many records have trumped this, personally. Equillibrium have great moments and the songwriting is solid, but they are real damn cheesy. Finntroll have had a few cool records, but nothing recent comes close. Moonsorrow were the only band I enjoyed as much as this record, personally. But thanks for all the recommendations!
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