Throne of Forest

Yet another new acquaintance in the latest promo shipment from Stygian Crypt. Vigrid, with most members also active or previously active in Heorot, gave me really good vibes with their cover. The logo looked pretty vicious and the artwork just oozed of woodsy black metal. But it turns out I was way off base, seeing as this is far from the harsh, in-your-face, blasting black I was expecting.

The opener, Guardian of the wild, is a confusing track. The almost cheerful drum beats and seriously melodic rhythm guitar makes for a standard folk metal song, but the lead guitar brings with it a saddened atmosphere and the gnarly high-pitched screams are more of a melodic black metal variant. It works out way better during the much slower (albeit the remaining material is still only mid tempo as there’s no real speed near it) and angst-filled Crown of guilt. The atmosphere reeks of sadness, the guitar leads are wicked in delivering desperation, and the break of flute and acoustic guitar work enhances the strong atmospheric vibe. But who the hell told that guy he could sing? The clean male vocals in the beginning of the song are absolutely abysmal, and it completely ruins an otherwise great tune. If they want variation they should stick to the already good main vocals and add the deep and powerful growl one can hear towards the end of Howl for the absent moon instead. Just stay clear off the clean ones, at least of the male variant. The session vocals by Kaisa, of Battlelore, in Kauniin koto are great, and more of that caliber certainly wouldn’t hurt Vigrid’s sound.

I honestly don’t really know what to think of this. It’s very atmospheric, and effective for that matter, occasionally very damp and angst-like and otherwise way too cheerful. A few of the tracks are great for a melodic black metal band, albeit too slow in my book, whereas other tracks feel too out of place in comparison. I have no idea what this band is up to nowadays. Throne of forest was recorded back in 2006, so I imagine they’d have a whole heap of new songs if they’re still active. And if so I sure hope they’ll pick up speed and stick to the starker material.

Originally written for http://www.mylastchapter.net

After searching folk metal band through folk metal band I stumbled across the band Vigrid. I read a review which compared them to Elvenking with screamed vocals. So after that I decided to give them a try. I must say this is a wonderful start for a young band. I see a great deal of potential these guys.

The music is fabulous. The vocals are raspy and higher pitched screams. The guitars sound beautiful and melodic. The guitars gallop along nicely on songs such as hunter's moon, guardians of the wild, and path of vengeance. Howl for the absent moon has an elegant acoustic guitar intro that speaks for itself. Some music could be perfect by itself let along adding vocals to make it even better. The drums don't blast furiously like some bands tend to but they get the job done. Don't get me wrong the drums are wonderful. The drummer definitely has a great sense of creativity. He has a great ability to use his hi hat pedal to add well to the music while maintaining a good tempo. Never a dull moment. The flutes are a wonderful addition to the music. They create joyous vibes for the listener as they lead over the guitars.

The best tracks are guardians of the wild, hunter's moon, and howl for the absent moon. I rate this album 80 because I believe they have yet to release their best work. The music reminds me of early Elvenking and I expect them to grow into something much better than this has to offer. I look forward to more releases.