Of Bards and Madmen

Formed between 2001 and 2002 and releasing a decent yet unspectacular demo around a year later, Lothloryen (curious spelling...) are among the surprisingly scant number of South American folk metal bands around today. Or, to be more exact, they are a band that is billed as folk metal, though the accuracy of this heading is somewhat questionable.

Their music is predominantly highly melodic power metal, with the biggest allusions to traditional music being the use of acoustic guitar that occasionally bridge the midsections of their songs, but more often than not are simply used to provide gentle intros and outros.

The slightly uneven recording quality and short running time suggest that 'Of bards and madmen' may have actually been recorded as another demo before being released by the band's label Force Majeure Records, and with the rough-around-the edges songwriting that slows this promising debut down it would come as no surprise.

The vocals of Leonaldo Oliveira are the clear focus of the songs, and while the melodies - reminiscent of older, less MTV-aimed Elvenking – are strong and suitably bombastic, they are also rather samey, and contribute to an atmosphere of repetition that prevents many of the songs from becoming genuinely memorable.

The ever-present and, it must be said, unexpectedly intricate lead guitar playing is generally what drives the songs forward behind the vocals, and while it is refreshing to hear a modern power metal band so guitar driven, it is obvious that the rhythm parts are quite underdeveloped. Most of the riffs are epic metal-style slow gallops that would be perfect as part of a build up to something – but the songs on 'Of bards and madmen' tend to chug along at the same pace for their duration, and the impressive guitar melodies alone are not enough without some sort of driving force to back them.

But despite there being a general lack of zeal throughout the CD, there are moments along the way that suggest Lothloryen have a brighter future ahead of them than merely being also-rans. The 2 ballads are fairly weak – "Another tale" scarcely more than an interlude – but the more metallic songs all have positive aspects that have the potential to be expanded upon.

The CD ends with a run of its strongest tracks; "Elfin" shows greater variety of tempo and justifies its relatively protracted track length more than most of the other songs, while the final 2 tracks - both ported directly from the preceding demo "Thousand ways to the same land" (the CD would clock in at only 35 minutes without them) - have been chosen with good reason, being among its strongest cuts. "Namarie", with its brooding atmosphere and gentle acoustic outro makes for a good closing track, while "There and back again" is an exuberant power metal effort that adds a little vim to the CD before it fades out.

The final product, though, is a CD of merely decent quality – while Lothloryen have shown they are a talented bunch of lads, they need to trim the fat from their songs somewhat to step up into the big time. With a little streamlining, the music here could all be improved upon greatly, and the positive elements are enough to intimate better things are to come.

(Originally written for http://www.metalcdratings.com/)

Lothlöryen is a Brazilian folk metal band that mixes shades of melodic power into their sound that gives off an evolved version of Elvenking. I will start off by saying that Lothlöryen's vocalist sings almost identically like Elvenking's famous singer Damnagoras which gives the whole experience of listening to "Of Bards And Madmen" another feel that makes you think you are in an elven village in Middle-Earth or dancing around a campfire with hobbits. Now this isn't an Elvenking clone or anything, but they do have a similar construction in the way they have their music and individual songs. There is much emphasis on the melody and vocals being the primary focus whilst the drumming and guitars take a slight backseat. Don't get me wrong, often there are speedy guitar moments with a nice melodic solo that reminds me more of Elvenking or Korpiklaani. The biggest highlights and strong points of the album are definitely the vocals and guitars; very impressive vocal performance on most songs and the guitars are great and very easily mixing smoothness with faster part - well done.

The individual songs are structured in a way with the typical introduction, "Welcome" which is a nice folksy opening that sets the mood for being very calm and there are some quick chants along with a melodic guitar part. Very nice way to set the album up. The first actual song after the intro is probably the strongest on the album with a catchy chorus and some awesome melody.

The slower songs either kill at first listen or bore you, the first midtempo song 'Moriality' is a great song with nice vocals and even a short solo that once again reminds me of Elvenking. There are nice female vocals incorporated on the ballad "Another Tale" that makes for a beautiful duet; this song is the only true ballad on the album.

To sum up, Lothlöryen has come out of nowhere with their first full-length album that mixes folk metal and melodic power to create a combination of Elvenking and a heavier Cruachan. Of Bards And Madmen displays a unique composition of melody and power that creates the binding atmosphere of being in a far off land such as Middle-Earth. Strongly recommended for fans of folk metal, Elvenking, and melodic bands in general.