Diabol Boruta – ‘Czary’ (2019)
Rating: 8/10
Release: 25 January 2019
Label: Pure Steel Publishing
Once again I will state how surprised I am by some of the releases we get here at the site and also by how many I have never heard of…..even established acts with multiple releases. Case in point is the latest album from Poland’s Diabol Boruta, their 3rd full length. Entitled “Czary” (I am going to say it means “Witchcraft”), the new album features 12 tracks and over 55 minutes of music for their label, Germany’s Pure Underground. I’ve never heard of them until now as we have never reviewed any of their previous releases and I am kinda surprised. This 5 piece should have their collective act together by this point and they certainly do. I was skeptical of the “folk metal” tag seeing no folk instrumentalist list in the band bio (vocal/bass, guitar, keys and drums) but decided to keep an open mind. Upon the start of the album, I thought I was right as the first tracks seemed like pretty straightforward/borderline pagan metal. As the album progressed, folk instrumentation started creeping in more and more and in various forms. Let us assume it all from the keyboards, right? Or maybe some guest appearances? I would say you will hear a plethora of different things……starting with “Zaklecie” (“Spell”) there is something akin to flute, whistle, accordion and various others throughout. A pleasant surprise. Then they added some female vocals in. Wow another surprise. I really had a hard time deciding on a similar act and I thought Baldrs Draumar, Thyrfing and Amorphis might work on some level mixed with some Gjeldrune. Vocally is where I think the highlights are for me with clean primary vocals with some occasional heavier style and plenty of choral and group vocals with some females as well. Lyrics are in Polish which works for sure, but it would be nice to hear a track in English….and they must have heard me since last tracks “Slave” and “Kingdom Of No Heaven” sound like they are in English and work well too. There are tons of guitar riffs, arpeggios and solos throughout which are all solid and a great mix of tempos and styles. The overall sound is decent with sound like a classic thrash album, giving it a little more bite. While not as heavy as I thought it would be, “Czary” ended up being a lot folkier and diverse then I thought it would be. All in all a pleasant listen and one you should give a few spins.
Tracklist
- Czary Intro 01:15
- Czary 04:51
- Zaklęcie 06:02
- Studnia 04:38
- Golem 05:30
- Królestwo nie niebieskie 04:38
- Znajdź mnie wśród gwiazd 04:52
- Niewolnik 05:00
- Duch wiatru 06:00
- Lipka 02:45
- Slave 05:00
- Kingdom of No Heaven 04:38