I'll be the first to admit that prior to checking out this band from Denmark, I didn't know a whole hell of a lot about the so called Folk and Viking Metal genre. However after one listen to Svartsot's superbly crafted debut disc Ravnenes Saga (Napalm Records), it's safe to say that I'm now pretty intrigued by the genre I can tell you that.
Svartsot boasts a typical metal setup in that it employs a twin guitar onslaught (Cris Frederiksen, Michael Andersen), with the standard bass (Martin Brandt) and drums (Niels Thøgersen) and one hell of vocalist (Claus Gnudtzmann) whose specialty is alternating between high pitched screams and a guttural cookie monster style delivery. However they also have one member (Stewart C. Lewis) devoted strictly to Irish whistles and the Bodhran as well which really compliments the punishing and powerful guitar onslaught as he interlocks perfectly with Frederiksen's scorching leads. The melodies come fast and furious and the music itself is a solid blend of unrelenting contemporary metal coupled with native Nordic folk traditions.
This is music that you can seriously kick out the jams to in a traditional European beer hall if there happens to be one on in your neighborhood. There's just one problem though, when you get up on the table, do you dance a jig or go with the standard head bang? As either one is bound to cause spillage my word of advice would be to proceed with caution.
Track Listing
1) Gravøllet
2) Tvende Ravne
3) Nidvisen
4) Jotunheimsfærden
5) Bersærkergang
6) Hedens Døtre
7) Festen
8) Spillemandens Dåse
9) Skovens Kælling
10) Skønne Møer
11) Brages Bæger
12) Havets Plage
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