At the beginning of 2024, Ember Belladonna released her debut full length album ‘The Grove’. It was an undeniably smart collection of tunes, mixing elements of goth, metal and folk, showcasing great flute work. Taking the flute beyond its usual prog rock space, Ember created a musical landscape of her own: sometimes dark but without feeling oppressive, but often otherworldly. The album presented songs that had a heart that could be easily orchestrated, but often felt very different – and more distinctive – than the several hundred Nightwish clones filling the globe.
Tag Archives: folk metal
SATARIAL – Blessed Brigit
How to describe Satarial? Aside from possessing a broad extreme metal tendency, this Moscow based outfit are almost impossible to pigeonhole. A rather clumsy description might be “operatic battle black metal”. It sounds implausible, but that’s kind of where the bulk of their inspiration comes from on their 2016 release ‘Blessed Brigit’. It should be a mess; it should be so confrontational that almost no-one would want to listen…but, somehow, their noisy sound collages are fascinating in their aural brutality – and after over a decade of plying their ugliness, the fact that they still sound so original and so vibrant is no mean feat.
New video from Skyforger
Ahead of their European tour, Latvian folk-metal band Skyforger have posted a new promo video. The song, ‘The Black Sails’ comes from their current album ‘Senprūsija'(translated: ‘Old Prussia’). You can watch the full clip below.
HARROW – Fallow Fields
This third album by Canadian outfit Harrow is a very interesting affair. Although principally pitched as a hybrid of black and folk metal, the resultant sounds on their 2015 release stretch much further than just those musical touchstones. Taking in acoustic and even shoegazy moods, it could be said that Harrow’s take on folk metal doesn’t always the most obvious route.
Northern Oak announce tour dates
To tie in with the release of their superb 2014 release ‘Of Roots and Flesh’, folk metal band Northern Oak have confirmed a short run of live shows.
Those located in the north of England (or willing to travel) can see the band live at the following venues between the end of September and November: