Last month, Paganfest was announced with tours in Europe and the US. Ensiferum is one of my favorite bands, and I'm also a big fan of Tyr and Turisas. Eluveitie I had never heard of so I decided to check them out. This album is fantastic. I can't speak to their previous releases, but this CD is really something special. Mixing Gothenburg-style metal with traditional Celtic folk, Eluvieitie gets the recipe just right. On more that one occasion, you'll think you are listening to a new Dark Tranquillity release, so similar are the riffs and vocal stylings of the two bands. But after a few seconds of crushing metal guitar, the fiddle, violin, and whatever crazy string/wood instruments they use will cut in and take you to their folk roots. The album is heavy and fast and is only slowed down by two haunting yet beautiful instrumental tracks. Chrigel switches between singing in English and Gaulish-a Celtic language that died 1500 years ago-which doesn't distract and makes the album just that much more intriguing.
Unfortunately, the album isn't flawless. I would have liked to see some more use of female vocals; they would have done wonders to the instrumental pieces. I have to question the decision to include "Samon" twice (one regular, one instrumental) I'm all for bands using build up songs that introduce the album, but to include the same track as the first and last song just seems redundant.
Nevertheless, this is one of the best albums so far this year. I can't tell if this is the new wave of folk metal, or the new wave of Gothenburg metal, but it rocks and that's all that matters.
9/10
