Description

Green vinyl with lyric insert. Limited 333 numbered copies

Einherjers album Norwegian Native Art is a pagan pleasure. The lyrical theme is of course Norse (Odin’s ravens, Yggdrasil tree, etc,) so let’s get to the music. ‘Wyrd of the Dead’ starts off the album with a slow-to-midpaced, but vigorous, tempo, and you are greeted by a uniquely acidic growl with a reasonable amount of intelligibility; no fear of any Halford impersonations here! Einherjer uses a distinctive mix of rhythms and instrument placement. They have a signature groove, without just riffing as fast as possible, that makes you nod and swing your head, pump your fists and swing a sword… then do it all in unison. You get the sense they are really inspired and are not just a formula band. Even though the rhythm guitar isn’t as obvious or as spectacular as some tech-death bands, it is very strong, well played, gives the music direction and always stays exciting. The drums offer an attention-grabbing, rhythmic and artistic yet simple style to the album. The keyboards are constantly present, but are used only as support and never seem out of place. Lead guitar is melodic and structure-based, although rare. Andy LaRocque (King Diamond) puts in a typical LaRocque lead on song 2, Doomfaring. The bass is well mixed in the production and gives a full sound to the record. The final song, Regicide, is a type of folky, atmospheric down-tempo song with a nice dark tone. Clean male and female vocals dominate this last track: male/duet/female. Finally it ends with a minute of raspy reprise and a stressful moment as the vocals and music suddenly subside. The end product is unmistakably one of the finest Viking metal specimens existing; therefore if you like the genre at all, this album is more than worth a try!

Track list:
1. Wyrd Of The Dead
2. Doomfaring
3. Hugins Eyes
4. Burning Yggdrasil
5. Crimson Rain
6. Howl Ravens Come
7. Draconian Umpire
8. Regicide