Rating: 9/10 Release: 16 July 2023 Label: Independent Flor De Loto (“Lotus Flower”) is a five-member Peruvian prog-metal band. Their bandcamp page at the time of writing says they’re “what would have happened if Iron Maiden met Jethro Tull in the ruins of Machu Picchu”, and that’s close, but this … Continue reading →
Rating: 7/10 Release: 8 Septerber 2023 Label: AOP Records Finsterforst is a six-member German folk metal band, and Jenseits (“Beyond”) is their eighth album and 3rd EP. There are two guest musicians who brought their voices and instruments into the booth, too. All-in-all, it’s a strange little beast: an EP-length … Continue reading →
Rating: 9/10 Release: 16 August 2023 Label: Independent Lombolo is a Swedish folk metal trio and “Här och Där” (“Here and There” but way more fun to say) is their second full-length album. ‘Trio’ is a bit misleading because there are guest appearances from Anchorsmashed, Rietas, and Amadeus Kamsvåg. Some … Continue reading →
Rating: 8/10 Release: 4 August 2023 Label:Independent Adarvirog is a huge, eight-piece Belarusian dark folk metal band. I never get tired of Eastern Europe’s folk metal contributions, and Adarvirog’s second album exceeds expectations. Čornaje Sonca (“Blacker than the Sun”) follows closely in form to 2017’s Край паданняў (“Edge of Traditions”). … Continue reading →
Rating: 9/10 Release: 18 Februari 2022 Label: Independent “Tell the Wind” is the second full-length album from Slovenian six-member symphonic folk metal band Zaria, and the first to feature English-language songs! This band walks on the edge of the chasm of symphonic metal bands with operatic singers. I don’t like … Continue reading →
Rating: 9/10 Release: 17 March 2023 Label: Via Nocturna Diaboł Boruta– typically a five-piece metal band from Poland named for the Devil Boruta, a character from Polish mythology known for corrupting noblemen– have forgotten their metal gear on the way to the recording studio, and, instead, met up with some … Continue reading →
Rating: 9/10 Release: 14 July 2023 Label: AFM Records “There shines a new light in our world! The everfrost is calling!” And call it did! “Everfrost” (not to be confused with the band of the same name) is the first release from Winterstorm since 2016’s epic concept album “Cube of … Continue reading →
Rating: 7/10 Release: May 2023 Label: Independent This album is celebrating ten years of Jolly Jackin’! Go ahead and snicker, it’s a fun album. For the uninitiated, they’re a six-piece folky Irish punk band from Budapest. Their songs fill the gamut of drinking, nautical shenanigans, a ballad or two, and … Continue reading →
Rating: 8/10 Release: 5 May 2023 Label: Independent Nemoreus is a six-member Austrian folk-metal band who probably don’t even need this amount of introduction. “Eluna” and “Mountain High” are deservingly famous in their own right. Their new EP is lavishly titled “Orcunadoras, Chapter 1: Warrior”. It’s only three tracks, or … Continue reading →
Rating: 8/10 Release: 7 April 2023 Label: Independent Valensorow is a four-member band out of California, and Shorestank is an amazing mash-up of absolute chaos and mayhem. It’s definitely folk metal, but rather than weighing down the metal with melody, the folk parts are in the pit moshing with the … Continue reading →
