Mongol – ‘Chosen by Tengri’ (2014)
Rating: 8/10
Release: 26 July 2014
Label: Independent
I ended my review on the ‘Altan Urug’ album stating I was curious about future creations. The start of this ‘future’ is ‘Chosen by Tengri’, the new album of these Canadians. What has changed? Well, not much. They’re still into the Mongol history and they’re still blending Folk with Melodic Death Metal. And of course the folk is of the mongol kind.
But Mongol has grown, their compositions are better and it’s obvious they have learned a lot from their previous album.
The Mongol folk-influences are more prominent as well, something you can hear in the very nice track Chosen by Tengri. Another fine example of these folk-elements played on real folk-instruments like the banjo is the track The Last Ride of the Merkits, where the banjo takes a lot of the credits. Another nice add to this song are the female vocals, which give the track a very nice touch.
What hasn’t changed is the thick layer of keyboard, in Sabutai this reached the highest level. Like this Mongol general, the keys rule here.
The trollish sound which we know from their previous albums is still there as well, in Scourge of the East, this sound is back, to act as the counterpart of the nice guitars in this track. Mongol shows in this kind of songs they know how to create nice compositions which you keep interested in their music.
And when you’re warmed up nicely with this album, we get some nice throat-singing again in Whispering Winds, a very nice track, in which they take is a bit slower. After this very nice Mongol sound this album ends with the ‘quiet’ rumbling of a thunderstorm on the Mongol plains.
Mongol has learned and grown, they take it more seriously, improved the compositions and gave it all a bit more a Mongol touch. Of course the sound of a bunch of young dogs had it’s charm, but with album they show they take their music seriously and they’re up to very nice things. They might have been chosen by Tengri, but I think the great Subutai would have chosen then as well.
Tracklist
- Clans Carve the Way
- Chosen by Tengri
- Subutai
- The Last Ride of the Merkits
- Scourge of the East
- Storming the Wall
- Glory of the Khan
- Whispering Winds