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Morrigan > Headcult > Reviews
Morrigan - Headcult

The return of Bathory or The Ponies of Doom. - 70%

Das_Bruno, November 23rd, 2007

Morrigan's 2003 album "Celts" helped the germans to get some attention and
while a really good album, something always bugged me about it.
It was a bit of a mixed bag. There were some fast black metal tracks,
some epic viking metal and even some black'n'roll songs and while none of these
songs were bad, it didn't really work together. In my opinion the best songs were
the epic, bathory-esque ones like "Giants of Stone" and seemingly Morrigan had
the same opinion, since their follow up to "Celts", "Headcult" is epic, folky,
mostly midpaced and full of Bathory-worship.

The celts have returned with battle hymns that would suit a movie. I can see a film
like "Braveheart" scored with songs like "Headcult" (the battle scenes)
or "Crom Cruach" (some scene where all the celts wander around the mountains).
Of course, in a pre-christian setting, since Morrigan and Crom Cruach are some
kind of pagan gods.

What you will hear: galloping drums and shattering cymbals lay the rythmic
foundation of most songs, persistently pumping without much variation, simple,
bassy metal riffing adding to the headbanging factor. Ambient noises, horse and
bird sounds add to the atmosphere and everything is adorned with epic chorals
and some screams, but the cleanly sung choirs stick out more and make me think
of drunk heathens.

That's right, imagine an army of heavily inebriated blue-painted celts singing battle
hymns while riding towards you on their mighty steed, furious, their hearts still
pumping from the last battle, the heads of their enemies on their saddles,
the imminent triumph glowing in their eyes, somehow playing folky tunes on their
instruments and... actually I think the celts rode ponies.
Ponies aren't very metal. But sitting around a campfire and
singing "Where Rainbows End" or "Spell of the Mountain King" certainly is.
But I digress.

The really important things are: this album is epic as fuck, the production sounds
rather old school, it is epic as fuck and it is the very epitome of viking metal
(aside from being epic as fuck).
It is not very original and lacks diversity, but who cares.
I asked for viking metal, not for progressive jazz mathcore.

There's not much more I can think of... but if you happen to like
"Twilight of the Gods" or the "Nordland" saga, this is the album that
gives you that Quorthon-fix. Get it now, fellow heathens.
I heard the limited edition came with a battle axe and a Shetland pony.