ELVENKING - review added 13th September 2010
Album Review: Red Silent Tides (2010)
For fans of: Folk Metal... and Mr. Big
Italian band Elvenking was initially formed in the Autumn of 1997 by guitarists Aydan and Jarpen. In March 1998 singer Damnagoras joined the band, and the following month drummer Zender came onboard. Bass player Gorlan was the last to join. Since then... just to confuse matters... Damnagoras left and then rejoined, violinist/keyboardist Elyghen joined, and Jarpen left to be replaced by Rafahel. Got that? Oh, and Lethien plays violins with the band on the live stage.
The band's first demo disc "To Oak Woods Bestowed" was recorded in 2000, and they were signed to AFM soon after. Their first official album, "Heathenreeel" was released in 2001. "Wyrd" followed in 2004, "The Winter Wake" in 2006, "The Scythe” in 2007, The acoustic “Two Tragedy Po-ets (...and a caravan of weird figures)” - featuring a version of Belinda Carlisle's 'Heaven Is A Place On Earth' - came after that. That brings us up to 2010, and new release "Red Silent Tides".
I haven't heard a lot else by Elvenking, so cannot fairly compare this album to their older work. However, to all intents and purposes, RST is a continuation of the sound that came before. That means folk-based melodic metal that leans more toward the melodious than metallic side of the genre. If a bunch of medieval minstrels could plug themselves in and impersonate In Flames playing Bon Jovi songs, this is probably what they would sound like.
The stand out feature of Elvenking is definitely vocalist Damnagoras. He sounds uncannily like Eric Martin from Mr. Big, and his sweet tone gives the band a unique edge amongst metal acts. It's amazing the boost a great singer gives because the songs here aren't always amazing, but with Damnagoras performing them they all make perfect sense and come across brilliantly. With better material, I can't begin to imagine how good these guys could sound. The interactions between the 'standard' rock instruments, the violins and keyboards is often stunning.
This is a supremely likeable album. It's a long way from perfection, but it's so inoffensive to the ears it's hard not to have a big soft spot for it.
Check out... That voice.
Track List:
01. Dawnmelting
02. The Last Hour
03. Silence De Mort
04. The Cabal
05. Runereader
06. Possession
07. Your Heroes Are Dead
08. Those Days
09. This Nightmare Will Never End
10. What's Left Of Me
11. The Play Of The Leaves
Label: AFM Records
Artist's website(s): Elvenking | MySpace | Facebook
