Huldrafolk

This is the second full-length album from Wyrd, a Finnish band playing
folky black metal.

The backing guitar on this album is somewhat obscure and distant, though
the lead parts come in loud and clear. Drumming is very simple and
mid-paced, for the most part. This album has a lot of background synth,
of the floating, Burzum variety. The vocals are snarled, and are quite
understandable. Nature samples are frequent, but never annoying.

This is easily the best of Wyrd's albums, in terms of songwriting. Each
song has a memorable theme, around which the band builds a number of
variations. The mood of the album is stately and epic, with a few more
aggressive moments. "Ashes of Man and Oak and Pine" is epic and deeply
atmospheric, with a great guitar theme. The false stop and slower
section at the end is particularly notable.

"Aijeke" is one of the most spirited and heavy pagan-style songs I've ever
heard. The intro sets up the mood, and then the main riff drives it home
over and over again. Just amazing! I'd put the songwriting here on par
with Bathory's Viking-metal period, in terms of originality and
memorability.

"Pale Forest" alternates between quick-step passages and mid-paced
atmospheric work, with a few solos in the mix. The bass interlude a
couple of minutes in is especially great. The transitions are woth
mentioning, too: Wyrd goes from a blasting section with overlaid chants
straight into a rollicking, vicious mid-paced riff, with no hesitation.

"Huldrafolk" starts out slow, with a delicate acoustic guitar piece that
seems to recall earlier themes of the album. Despite the gentle intro,
the song itself is an angry, blasting chunk of repetitive black
metal. The keys on this one take on much of the melody, leaving the
guitar to saw in the background. Cool break in the middle, as well.

"Misanthrope's Masterplan" is the album's second epic, at roughly
thirteen minutes long. It starts off with birdsong and acoustic guitar,
then adds some synth before breaking into metal. This part of the song mixes
acoustic and electric guitar throughout, creating a melancholy
feeling. The synth break at the halfway mark separates the quietude of
the opening half from the grandiose anger of the closing, which features
some nice bass lines.

"The Harvest Day" is close to "Huldrafolk" in tone, with plenty of
raging speed. The chorus is a testament to anti-Christian anger, and the
clashing cymbals seem to echo the sentiment. The song fades out into a
mournful synth line, which itself gives way to the sound of a storm at
sea.

"Huldrafolk" is a modern black metal classic, as far as I'm
concerned. Every note is perfectly placed, and the album is wonderfully
evocative of nature. On top of that, there's just the right amount of
heaviness to keep the listener engaged. Wyrd's other work is great, but
this one tops everything from "Heathen" and their early work as
Hellkult, on through to "Vargtimmen" parts one and two. Get this at any
cost. Highest recommendations!

Standout tracks: "Aijeke", "Pale Forest", "Misanthrope's Masterplan"

Review by Vorfeed: http://www.vorfeed.net

First, I'd like to say that this is my first review. So please disregard any misinformation.

This was the first Wyrd album I’ve heard. And simply put: This album blows me away. There is a great number of influences in this. Ranging from straight up Black Metal to Folk and even some symphonic. But it all culminates to one of the greatest and original sounds I’ve ever heard.
The first track “Ashes of Man and Oak and Pine” is a makes a very dark atmosphere. In my opinion it is the heaviest track on the album, it also has a lot of Folk influence. Now onto the second track “Aijeke“: This one has a very medieval feel. Very acoustic and not as dark as the other tracks, but its my favorite. “Pale forest” is the first Black-Metal song . It can be kind of slow, it doesn‘t seem to fit with the rest of the album, but its still good. The title track “Huldrafolk” is a VERY emperor influenced BM song, very symphonic but the keyboards never get in the way of the guitar. And that’s the way it should be. “Misanthrope's Masterplan” is a long song that draws out like a knife. Heavy keyboard work with a BM ending. The last track “The Harvest Day” the hardest song on the album. Like Huldrafolk it is a very Emperor influenced track.
I have but one slight problem with this album: It can be very slow. The keyboard solos are good, but ultimately can work against it depending on what kind of metal fan you are.
If you’re a metal fan, get this album. That’s all I have to say.

Wyrd are one of those black metal bands that prefer nature's glory over satan's wrath... yeah that kind. I must say I had very low expectations for Wyrd and they exceeded all of them... this reminds me of a really grim Agalloch. Huldrafolk has 6 songs, and none of them sound alike. There is a common vibe throughout, however, and the album flows together quite well. Add in some sporadic blasts and random nature samples and you have a damn good dark metal album.

Ashes of Man and Oak and Pine opens with a babbling brook and sparse guitar line... Agalloch circa Pale Folklore is a definite reference, minus production. The mood here is excellent, really raw, earthy and somber... every song has a repeated melody, whether it be driven home by hyperspeed black metal (Huldrafolk) or lilting, beautiful acoustics and saxophone/flute (Misanthropes Masterplan). The vocals are primarily black metal screeches

Track 2, Aijeke almost sounds like Suidakra... the albums crown jewel has to be Misanthrope's Masterplan, though, a 14 minute jaunt through some misty forest in middle Europe. Really, this is great stuff, and the Kenny G style sax solo KICKS ASS! Rarely does a band actually capture the essence of what they intend to represent, and Wyrd grabs the atmosphere from the air so to speak. This is 100% recommended for fans of Agalloch, Empyrium or similar dreary music

A neat aspect is that each track is tied together by the same babbling brook sample... it helps with consistency. Wyrd deserve a bit more recognition, they rock