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Graveland > The Fire of Awakening > Reviews
Graveland - The Fire of Awakening

Wotan smiles - 74%

Felix 1666, December 29th, 2016
Written based on this version: 2003, CD, No Colours Records (Limited edition, A5 digipak)

Rob Darken, Graveland. Do I have to say anything else? Ah, there are some pretty young and innocent guys in the last row who have never heard of this Polish follower of Richard Wagner, the classic grandmaster of monumental scenarios? Okay, I accept my inevitable fate and will provide you with some information concerning "The Fire of Awakening".

Of course, Darken has not modified his style. This dude must be a lucky man, because he seems to be his greatest fan and with that said, it comes as no surprise that "The Fire of Awakening" sounds exactly like its predecessor and this predecessor sounded exactly like its predecessor and so on. Darken's creations sound elegiac and majestic. I bet that Wotan and the other divine authorities in Valhalla nod their heads benevolently. Endlessly floating mid-tempo rhythms create a pretty mesmerizing aura. "Think big" summarizes the thoughts of Darken well and just like his German idol, he designs excessive, opulent panoramas. Five songs with an average length of nine minutes are usually hard to digest. Yet this configuration is deceptive. In fact, those who do not listen very closely to the album might be of the opinion that "The Fire of Awakening" presents only one song. However, we keep calm, because the lack of variations and the susceptibility for repetition are well known elements in Darken's artistic work. But mysteriously, this does not indicate a low quality of his albums.

Despite his formulaic approach, the Polish wood gnome is able to pen an album that casts its spell upon the listener. Some dramatic sections, for example evoked by the celestial choirs that show up in "Die for Freedom", do not fail to have an impact. Darken himself contributes some nice vocal parts as well. Every now and then, he delivers some raw screams that sound like he is spitting fire. I still wonder that my living room does not start to burn, but this is not of general significance. Regardless of the vocals, one has to mention the rough, medieval charm of the melodies. Yes, they are all cut from the same cloth, but this is not to say that they suck. They are rather like the restless sky on a dark and stormy winter day. Constantly slightly depressing, but always a tad changing due to the wandering clouds.

Is there anything left to say? No, the guys in the last row seem to be satisfied, not at least because of the neither outstanding nor flawed sound of "The Fire of Awakening". I admit that the snare drum could be a little bit more powerful, yet this does not affect the overall impression. Indeed, the entire "hardware" of the album is convincingly designed, just take a look at the stylish (yet slightly kitschy) artwork. Thus, things are quiet easy. Those who like Graveland's symphonies in general will also like this album - and vice versa.

Shall We Prevail? - 60%

CrimsonFloyd, July 9th, 2012

Between 1993’s In the Glare of Burning Churches demo to 2002’s Memory and Destiny all of Graveland’s major releases ranged from very good to great. Ten years of stellar material is a really impressive accomplishment that few bands can match; but alas, all streaks come to an end. 2003’s The Fire of Awakening is Graveland’s first truly mediocre release. While it’s stylistically not too far off from the prior three albums, exhibiting the same epic pagan metal style, it lacks the originality, inspiration and quality of its predecessors.

The basic elements that we have all come to expect from Graveland are present here: epic riffs, bellowing synths, militant drumming and Rob’s dry growls. However, nothing is really hitting the spot this time out. The riffs are fairly innocuous and the synths are predictable in their bombast. Rob often goes for overly simplistic and clunky riffs (i.e. the opening riff of “Battle of Wotan's Wolves”) that are well below Graveland’s standard. Other times the music just sounds like an uninspired replication of Creed of Iron.

There is actually a significant addition to The Fire of Awakening. This album marks the introduction of the Atlantean Monumental Choir and Ancient Valkyrian Choir. The introduction of real choirs opens up an entirely new range of possibilities for Graveland. No matter how great Rob’s synth samples are, nothing can replace the power of a group of well-trained human voices. However, here Rob employs the choirs very ineffectively. On albums such as Fire Chariot of Destruction and Will Stronger than Death the choirs make a massive impact; an astute listener will quickly notice that the vocals are far too dynamic to be produced by a synth. In contrast, it would be easy to assume that the vocals on The Fire of Awakening were the product of a keyboard. The vocal lines are monotone and fail to take advantage of the range that is available with a choir.

Most of the songs on The Fire of Awakening fail to distinguish themselves. The songs are somewhat plodding and feel dragged out. “We Shall Prevail,” is the only track that is really captivating. The way in which the opening stretch of choir builds toward the dramatic lead riff is quite chilling. The other tracks lack such standout moments and all sort of meld into one another.

While The Fire of Awakening is not a bad album, it is most definitely a pedestrian album. It’s safe, generic and uninspired—certainly well below Graveland’s high standard. While any musician who keeps at it for long enough will eventually release a few duds, it’s still disappointing when it happens. For that reason, The Fire of Awakening can be described as a big disappointment.

(Originally written for http://deinos-logos.blogspot.com)

Kindles fire and ash - 70%

autothrall, November 24th, 2009

The Fire of Awakening is the 7th full-length from Rob Darken's legacy under Graveland. Like most of his work, it's an acquired taste with a number of flaws, which taken in context, are not exactly flaws...but still have a tendency to test the listener's patience. What happens here is the natural union of some lush, amazing atmosphere bathed in angelic synthesizers, and the barbaric, plodding, often quite boring guitar rhythms that broil below. Add to this the relative length of each track, from 8-10 minutes long, and the fact that most of the album slides along at the same general pace...and you've got either a recipe for headache, or a brilliant 47 minutes of heathen glory.

Although I find myself leaning towards the latter concoction, I cannot say that this is one of the best of Graveland. It's good, and shows a marked improvement in Rob's ability to conjure atmosphere through very minimal means...but the guitar riffs afford so little interest, that their mere bludgeoning alone cannot support them. What I do appreciate is the way the entire album sounds like a steady war march, if you listen carefully, with eyes closed, the rhythm of the crashing drums can often become hypnotic, sucking you straight into the ages past, your boots tramping through the sludge of human carnage and the cold moors. The keyboards are really well played here, though they create nothing but simple, ethereal lines that truly sound like the valkyries calling you skyward after an honorable death. He'll often use a subtle melodic guitar line speed picked along the synth notes to create a great harmony. The album definitely has its moments, but 47 of them?

"We Shall Prevail" begins with the choir of valkyries, before a slowly paced sludge rhythm drives straight through some smaller, melodic lines. This slowly builds in momentum, like a charge that never fully breaks, and though broken up with more atmospheric provisions, the track doesn't really meet a satisfactory climax. Instead, it bowls over and the "Battle of Wotan's Wolves" takes over. This is my least favorite track on the album, though the most raw in terms of just pounding away with the guitars. Darken is wielding his standard garbled, harsh vocals, never quite so aggressive as many other singers in the genre, but sufficient and no surprise if you've heard his past albums. "In the Sea of Blood" is the most mercifully brief track, under 8 minutes, but the style does not defer from what has come before. More trudging. More guitar melodies skirting alongside the slow march of the cavalry like starved and hungry hounds that seek the mercy of their drivers.

If you've survived this far, then you can probably handle the final two tracks, which are both 10+ minutes in length. "Die for Freedom" is quite extravagant, with epic battle percussion and more of Rob's graceful synth work. It breaks for rations by the midpoint, but wastes little time in retrieving the thunder. I can't help but feel 2-3 minutes less here would have condensed the song into a superior force, because it seems right as it grips you it just keeps rambling on. The closer, "The Four Wings of the Sun" arrives with an extremly glorious opening riff, slow and crunchy and slathered in great picking lines. Again, over 10 minutes, but have patience, and you will be rewarded, for the synths in this track are yet again beautiful over the crashing percussion and the stable if repetitive guitars. The tranquil break at around 6:20 is emotional and helps reel you back in, and this is the strongest overall track.

If an entire album of slower paced, barbaric majesty set aloft by some refined synth ambience is what you find yourself in need of, then look no further. The Fire of Awakening offers little else. Some better guitar riffs, and more diversity of tempos would have surely livened the effort, but Graveland fans should still be pleased. I should mention that the two albums after this, Dawn of Iron Blades and Fire Chariot of Destruction, are both better records, some of the best of his career. If it's your first exposure, you may want to track those down instead. Otherwise, I'll meet you by the morning fog, cold spear in hand, cracked and frosted helm, and the end in my eyes.

Highlights: In the Sea of Blood, The Four Wings of the Sun

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

Darken Plays With Underage Girls - 55%

OzzyApu, April 3rd, 2009

I’m pretty split with this release. One side tells me that its repetitive and all the tracks sound alike and are way longer than they should be. My other half explains that the charging folk-riffs, choir ensemble, and Medieval: Total War II attitude make it a merciless piece of work. Going into this I knew I’d like at least one track, but that one track sounds just like all the other tracks. Fucking slacker…

Five tracks aren’t so bad, but when all of them are repeated riffs lasting over seven minutes, you know you just screwed yourself over. When each song starts it’s epic as hell, but it’s impact dies a few minutes in and listening to the rest of the track here on out just becomes fucking torture. I’d rather sodomize my speakers with a deodorant stick for lack of a better torture method with the tools sitting in front of my desktop. The worst part about it is that when the track is about to change – you know? That brief period where there is complete silence? It sounds so refreshing to hear complete tranquility after such a storm that it begs the question “Why listen to this in the first place?”

For what it’s worth, the songs themselves don’t have great formula, but the rhythm and riffs are pretty good. The five tracks here are grand, ambitious, and feel very historic. Darken pulls off a raspy growl the whole way through, but he sounds lazy and thus he doesn’t stand out at all. Again, slacking on the job. The production quality is quite clear and makes each song sound powerful. The riffs themselves are melodic, but mid-paced and aggressive, kind of the par with his modern catalog. The bass and drums are forgettable, as sad as that sounds. I’m serious though, since this album solely concentrates on the riffs. Bass just fills in the gaps behind the guitars while the drumming will forever be average pagan / folk / average with your hefty dose of double bass. “In The Sea Of Blood” is a violent track compared to the rest, if that helps in any way.

What Darken should have done is cut the song lengths in half (for the most part) and added different elements to them. He tried to pull a Brave Murder Day with this one, but too bad his riffs are neither hypnotic nor depressing. Regardless, the long folk tunes of “Battle Of Wotan’s Wolves and “Die For Freedom” have their charm in common rural events such as pillaging or urban events such as raping. In that respect, I’d give this album a listen, especially as a gateway to the newer releases.

Wonderfully majestic battle metal - 90%

The_Ippocalypse, October 23rd, 2007

Graveland is a musical entity that requires no introduction for even a casual listener of black metal. Nevertheless, I should preface this review by stating that a musician’s personal beliefs have little to no bearing on how I interpret and rate his music, so even if Rob Darken is labeled by many (rather inaccurately, I would add) as a “racist”, I do not allow such perceptions to cloud the true issue at hand, which is, after all, the album being reviewed. However, only a fool or an ignoramus could possibly come to the conclusion that the music produced by an individual has absolutely no connection whatsoever to his ideological outlook. Therefore, if an excellent product happens to be created by someone with so-called “odious” personal beliefs (I neither find Darken’s views odious nor all that controversial, but then again I am not a simpleton whose personal views strive for alignment with that which is politically correct), then so be it – such has been the course of history since it has been recorded, and so it continues to this day.

Of all of Graveland’s pagan- or Viking-metal era albums (basically everything including and following Immortal Pride), The Fire of Awakening best conveys a sense of epic construction and overall grandeur. Thematically and lyrically, from the first to the final notes, Darken’s five slow to mid-tempo constructions are meticulously crafted so as to tell a story of battle and determination that is simultaneously both hypnotic and stirring. Every track features simple percussion, guitars, and bass which, much like Burzum’s pre-prison output, contribute to a sum greater than its parts, rather than serve as a showcase for any individual instrument. Think what you will of Darken’s monotonous, grating vocals (this reviewer is fond of them within the context of the music), every track notably features sequences which run for several minutes in which there are no vocals and the lead guitar expands upon motifs earlier established, gradually building in intensity and leading the listener into new and bold territory, while the rhythm guitar keeps the listener anchored in the overall framework of the composition.

Metaphorically, while the listener is anchored to the battlefield of the album, each song guides him along a new path within that battlefield; additionally, within each path the listener is grounded by a rhythmic anchor, all while exploring deeper aural nuances exposed by primary melodies. Furthermore, the use of the synthesizer in a supporting capacity is masterful, particularly with the choral vocals that feature prominently yet appropriately throughout the album, often synchronised to the primary melodic components of every track. When you close your eyes as you start listening to “We Shall Prevail”, you will find that you may only open them at the conclusion of “The Four Wings of the Sun”, for each song plays its role in structuring the tale, roles not unlike the movements of a symphony, which as a result of their intrinsic features automatically convey to the listener that what is being absorbed is but part of a greater whole.

Whereas earlier Graveland can be characterised by its savagery and concise melody, later Graveland, of which The Fire of Awakening is representative, is better described as being majestic, with longer melodies. While earlier Graveland was more concerned with blunt impact, this newer style of Graveland aims to (successfully) subdue the listener with a steadily increasing barrage of intensity, like a slowly rising tide which drowns the unsuspecting victim, except that the victim is in fact here being rewarded, and the drowning is in fact marching forth into glorious battle where victory is completely assured. While I can without hesitation recommend every Graveland album, some are better than others, and while The Fire of Awakening is not THE best album, it is perhaps the best introduction from Graveland’s modern era that a new listener should consider exploring.

Annoying - 30%

Lunar_Strain, September 29th, 2006

So... I was at the Anal Blast show in Tampa, Florida on August 19th at the Brass Mug. Very, very good show which also happened to have lots of very, very good music for sale. While looking through the batches of the cheap, brand new (but seemingly rare) CDs, I stumbled upon a full section of Graveland -- a band who I've heard alot about, but have never listened to before.

I was very interested in Graveland, not only because of the large fan base/positive feedback I've recieved about the band, but also because I have a soft spot for Viking/Folk/Pagan themed Black Metal bands. I was enthusiastic about finally getting to hear them, but there were so many choices, and I only had ten dollars to spare (coincidently, every CD in the batch was Ten dollars even, unless marked otherwise). So, I picked one. An album titled "The Fires of Awakening" with Three Norseman on flying steeds brandishing spears on the front.

Unfortunately.. this album was TERRIBLE. Listening to the first track got me hyped. The choir intro before Darken's raspy voice inters with "We Shall Rise!" and the music begins. A good intro.. until the song actually begins. It seems to cut off a bit, like while in the studio they stopped recording, and then skipped on to a completely different recording. And the same riff plays over and over and over again. Dear God, this was... just absolutely appalling. Rob Darken apparently put no effort into writing the music for this album.

The guitar tracks repeat themselves over and over, through EVERY SONG on the CD. Listen carefully to the tracks, and listen hard to the guitars. Rob Darken, apparently, tries to throw you off with his drums and the choirs, but the guitar riffs are one and the same on every song. The bass just happens to follow the guitar, so there's no point in really mentioning it since the riffs are just the same.

It's disappointing to listen to the drums on this album. They were nicely leveled and everything seemed to come out clearly and audibly, but the drum tracks were ... repetitive. They same beat played on over and over. Of course, I can understand how repetitive drums doesn't mean you had a lack of effort, and that it just fits into the music, but it makes the song sounds the same as the rest. It's sloppy for a recording, and this album is very sloppy.

Rob Darken's vocals are decent, but his english is terrible. I listened to the CD while reading the lyrics, and noticed several times that he seemed to mispronounce and/or just plain skip words in the lyrics. He seemed to jump from sentence to sentence, which really made the song hard to follow (even though it was hard already).

I am very disappointed that my first experience with Graveland turned out to be so negative. I had high hopes for this band, which to me, stood out from the crowd and was very unique. Unfortunately, I was very wrong.

I would like to give Graveland a second chance and experiment with a different album, however, it also very true when you hear people say "First impressions are everything."

That is very true in the instance of this album, and it'd be a waste of time to listen to an album that is just as repetitive as this. As much as I disliked this album, however, I gave this 30 points for the production and the choirs, which were probably the only real impressive attributes this album had.

Masterpiece; Epic Black Metal - 90%

ict1523, November 6th, 2005

I just recently got introduced to this band and wasn’t expecting too much after hearing so many criticisms of Rob Darken including a comment which described him as a Mongolian pirate, however after listening to the music I was very pleased.

“We Shall Prevail” is a masterpiece of a song. It starts off with some acoustic and ambient music and then leads into great riffs and drums. The first lyrics of the song are “We shall rise”. I for one love Rob Darken’s vocals and his accent seems pretty unique compared to other black metal vocalists such as Abbath. The whole song is pretty long and has some awesome ambience in the background. Its very enjoyable. The riffs and melodies are very catchy. The atmosphere of the song is very dark and sad.

The rest of the songs on here are rather similar with similar riffs and melodies. The vocals continue to be excellent and entertaining. However they all seem to have a slightly different edge to them and while sounding similar that is not negative in any way as the music does not get very boring. You could listen to this over and over again and still enjoy everything in here.

One more thing to mention is just because this guy is believed to be a racist (I can’t make a judgment as I don’t know his beliefs) it does not matter, he still makes good music and doesn’t incorporate his beliefs into the lyrics. Varg for one seems to have Nazi beliefs but he still makes very good music. And I respect Darken also for being able to talk about his beliefs without caring what others might think about him.

Overall this is a masterpiece and all black metal fans will enjoy it and should check this album out.