| ~ Рецензии на Альбомы - Ensiferum ~ |
Ensiferum – “Меченосец”. Это дебютный альбом скандинавской группы, который вышел после нескольких изменений в составе и выпуска многочисленных демолент на SpinefarmRecords летом 2001 года, с годичной задержкой из-за проблем с микшированием. Запись проходила в Sundi-CoopStudios в Савонлинне со звукоинженером Туомо Валтоненом, при участии Trollhorn (Finntroll). Сама же группа существует с 1995 года. Её основателями были : Markus Toivonen (Guitar), Sauli Savolainen (Bass) и Kimmo Miettinen (Drums).
На обложку альбома помещён мрачный рацарь-воитель в полном боевом вооружении, стоит он в лодке, а на фоне красуются финские холмы, поросшие лесами. И чего можна ждать от такого арт-ворка? - думал себе я, какой-нибудь Viking Black Metal. Я оказался почти прав, с той лишь разницей, что слово Black, ну никак нельзя приписать к стилистике этого коллектива. Невероятная смесь фолковых, скандинавско-средневековых мелодий и убийственных гитарных риффов, исполненных на хорошей скорости с приличной долей агрессии, даёт все основания говорить, что перед нами Power Viking Metal. В поисках различной информации про эту группу (а когда группа выпускает свой первый альбом, не так и легко найти на неё что либо), я набрёл на интернет-страничку на которой эту группу охарактеризовали как : Viking-Heroic-Folk-Melodic-Power-Death-MetalBand (?!?!), с чем сложно не согласится. Тексты группа черпает с древних финских легенд, мифов и эпосов. Основную вокальную работы выполняет бесподобный Jari Maenpaa.
Начинается диск с Intro-композиции, сыгранной на убаюкивающей акустической гитаре. Далее идёт заглавная вещь - "Hero In A Dream", которая сполна вобрала все перечисленные выше стили, как по мне так, лучшая композиция на всём альбоме. Третим трэком идёт"Token Of Time" , средний по скорости гитарный проиграш плавно переходит в довольно быструю мелодию с завывающими пьяными викингами и злобным рыком вокала. "Guardians Of Fate" - “Стражники судьбы”, песня повествует нам про то, как люди покидаю родные края, отрекаются от своих корней и предков, и едут далеко на чужие земли, сыграно на простой весёло-грустной мелодии, местами слышится чистый женский бэк вокал. Следующим номером идёт пяти с половиной минутная колыбельная "Old Man" , где-то ближе к концу вновь скорости и скриминг поднимаются, как в первых трёх творениях. Шестой трэк "Little Dreamer" имеет немалую схожесть со “Старцем” , но мне он чем-то повеселее выдался. Седьмая и очень неплохая, берущая за душу композиция - "Abandoned" – это красивая, а местами тяжёлая баллада. После отдыха, войско вновь идёт в бой,зажигая быструю и весёлою – "Windrider" song. В восьмой песне - "Treacherous Gods" удачно соединились чистый с рычащим вокалом, а также хор злых викингов готовящихся к битве. Вкрапление женского вокала придало балладе под номером девять - "Eternal Wait" особый колорит. Взрывная и злобная мелодия, поднимающие боевой дух тексты, войску перед последней и смертельной битвой – это может передать только "Battle Song". Пляска диких гоблинов в крови и над костями человеческой расы, скоростные гитарные риффы, и весёлый фолковый мотив, радость и ликование победы, всё это вперемешку разит от композиции, которая завершает альбом - "Goblins Dance".
Written by: TheMasterOfTheDead in 28.05.2005
Невероятная смесь фолковых мелодий и убийственных гитарных риффов, исполненных на хорошей скорости с приличной долей агрессии. Power Viking metal вот как видимо должно называться это безобразие квартета юных, но перспективных финнов. Вокал более грубый чем у Alexi Laiho из Children Оf Вodom. Собственно еще одно определения музыки группы: помесь Детей Бодуна и Финских троллей, хотя они не подражают ни тем, ни другим, а играют свою музыку. Из вокалов так же присутствует хор пьяных викингов и женский вокал в балладе "Eternal Wait". Кроме этого хочется выделить берущий за душу "Abandoned" и абсолютно угарный "Goblins' Dance". Чухонцы действительно рулят по полной, и после прослушивания их дебютного альбома так и хочется ринуться в бой с троллями или другой какой нечистью, ну или просто покрушить чего-нибудь. Очень свежий и интересный альбом. Группа была признана лучшим открытием 2001 года в ряде музыкальных изданий.
Резенция взята с : Metal Library
Written by: Ganconer in 2001
Дело викингов живёт и процветает. Почему викингов? А что могут играть четверо горячих финских парней, с мечами, одетые в рубища и с раскраской а-ля Finntroll и поместившие на обложку мрачного воителя в полном боевом вооружении, стоящего в лодке на фоне лесистых холмов? Канешна викинг-метал, громко закричал я! Потом включил диск...и оказалось, что не всё так просто. Нет, конечно, хардкором здесь не пахнет и ошибся я не намного...Хотя давайте по порядку.
Открывает диск лирическое, ни к чему не обязывающее фолковое интро. Немного размявшись, финны врубают на полную катушку и из колонок несётся викинг-фолковый "Hero In A Dream" и первая ассоциация – Finntroll, тот же злобный рык на грани скриминга, убойная скорость и, конечно же, модная в последнее время, ссылка на хумппу. "Token Of Time" укрепляют впечатление, появившееся после второго трэка, только, помимо упомянутых компонентов, здесь добавляются эдакие гоблинские песнопения. "Guardians Of Fate" первыми секундами просто убивают – начальные аккорды вступления мучительно напоминает неких, извините за выражение, Offspring. Но не успел я расстроиться, как всё встало на места, только стало ясно, что финны являются, ко всему прочему, страшными фанатами Hammerfall – абсолютно классический эпик-паверный припев и хоровые распевки в лучших, так сказать, традициях. "Old Man" и "Little Dreamer" примерно похожи между собой – здесь смешались и уже упомянутые Тролли и приблэкованый вокал и даже призрак Skyclad'a замаячил.
Седьмую композицию – красивую и тяжёлую балладу "Abandoned", вероятно, можно отнести к репертуару, исполняемому скандинавскими воителями на привалах. Кого из финнов я не упомянул? Ну конечно! Children Of Bodomщина, разбавленная фолковыми проигрышами, отчётливо прорисовалась в "Windrider". "Treacherous Gods" удачно соединила в себе рычащий войс, чистый вокал и, опять же, групповые хоралы, которые, с добавлением женского войса, проявились ещё на одной балладе "Eternal Wait". И, как апофеоз битвы, всё более и более разгоняющаяся до сумасшедшей скорости "Battle Song" и бонус "Goblins Dance" – название говорит само за себя – местами мрачная, местами весёлая пляска на костях поверженный врагов.
Да, чуть не забыл упомянуть участие в записи Trollhorn'a (Finntroll, ежели кто не в курсе) и традиционное посещение Finnvox Studios. А теперь можно с радостью констатировать, что наши северные соседи подарили миру ещё одну очень и очень хорошую группу, которая придется по вкусу любителям и пауэра и мелодик-дэта и фолка и викинг-металла. Очень советую!
Резенция взята с : Metal Library
Written by: Ghostman in 15.12.2001
"Ensiferum" – группа из Финляндии играет блэк-дэт с влиянием фолка и средневековой музыки. Это дебютный альбом группы,который вышел после нескольких изменений в составе и выпуска многочисленных демолент. Соединение почти всех видов дэта с блэком и фолком вышло очень уравновешенным и красивым. Тексты основаны на старинных финских легендах, что вполне обычно для этого жанра. Уже в 90-ые годы появился ряд групп с международным саундом и имиджем,что привело к значительному обезличеванию некоторых рок-стилей. Честь и хвала финским ребятам,что они возродили настоящий фолк-металл.
Резенция взята с : Metal Library
Written by: Irondrummer in 17.03.2002
Wow. That's what I kept repeating over and over again while listening to Ensiferums self-titled debut album. After hearing a song or two online I knew that this band was for me. There style is somewhat reminicent of the folkiness of Finntroll mixed with the metallic speed of Children of Bodom. The whole album has a great atmosphere that leaves you completely satisfied by the last song. Now on to the songs: the first track, simply titled Intro, is a great introduction for a great cd. This song really set the mood for the rest of the album. Track two, Hero in a Dream, is easily one of the best on the whole cd. Great lyrics, a fast paced drum beat, and a very folk inspired guitar riff, this song truley makes you want to become a Viking Warrior! Jari's "black metal" vocal style also really fit well with the music. The next track Token of Time, starts off with a nice acoustic passage and then speeds up a bit. This was another great song. The next track, Guardians of Fate, starts off with a very punk sounding opening and then right away turns into a great semi chant. Another fast paced song, this song comes complete with great lead work and great lyrics as all the songs have. The next three tracks are extremely good as well. Track 8, Windrider, is also one of the best. It's fast, folky, and heavy all at once. A great acoustic passage is displayed at around the 1:35 as well. The remaining four tracks are all equally well done. In conclusion, if you're looking for original, heavy, melodic, folk inspired, and overall just plain fun, I would highly recommend checking out this album!
Written by: Silver_monkey in 12.03.2006
Fast as fuck. Atmospheric. Cool folk interludes. Great vocals. Yeah, it's Ensiferum's debut. Ensiferum are a band from Finland and they're playing viking/folk metal on steroids. They have the speed and intensity of Children Of Bodom and the atmosphere and great sense for folk interludes of, let's say, Einherjer. So, let me explain it a bit more. Music of Ensiferum consists of folky acoustic melodies, group screams (not like those in thrash, more like viking brotherhood like or something), fast as fuck Bodomish riffs, great vocals and great viking and battle inspired lyrics.
As said, vocals on this one are great. Jari can really sing. His harsh vocals are awesome brutal but one can still understand what is he saying. He also does cleans which fit great into their style of music. The guitarists do their job nicely, riffs are fast and catchy and the acoustic are also really folky and just for viking metal. Drumming is cool, there are some interesting double fills and the fast parts are well executed. Bass is just bass, can't say much more about that.
The album starts off with a cool intro, which nicely builds up the atmosphere.
Next three songs are, along with Eternal Wait, probably the best on the album. ''Hero In A Dream'' kicks you in the face right away. Awesome riff and a great headbanging chorus. It's fast as hell thoughout the whole song and it's probably the fastest song on the album. ''Token Of Time'' starts acoustic and is a bit slower then the previous song. It's really epic. It also has that nice interlude before the chorus. ''Guardians Of Fate'' starts of like some punk-rock song, but don't let that scare you away. It continues in the same manner as the previous two songs. ''Eternal Wait'' is slower and longer, but it has some great riffs.
The other songs are just as amazing as these.
Few bands managed to release such a strong first album as this one is. There is not a bad song on here, actually there isn't a minute of bad music up on this one. If you love fast, catchy and interesting metal, get this. Even if you're not really into Scandinavian stuff usually.
Written by: Cyclone in 29.11.2004
That’ll teach me. I listened to this album twice in the background without really paying attention to it, and thus my initial opinion of it was that it was pretty good but far inferior to Ensiferum’s just released follow-up Iron. Well, far be it from me to forgo humble pie when I earned it, and I really earned it here. (Mmmm, humble pie…) Ensiferum is one of the best Viking metal bands in the world, and this debut of theirs is really damn awesome, perhaps even better than Iron itself, the disc that got me into the band in the first place.
For those unfamiliar with Ensiferum, let me explain a few things. First of all, they play Viking metal in the speedy, symphonic, bombastic style popularized by Rhapsody, but not in the same way. These guys have refined it to an art, and with the glorious folk riff patterns on display any connoisseur of awesome fucking heavy metal will be in seventh heaven. The vocals are done mostly, but not entirely, in the black metal shriek mode, which normally I absolutely detest, but it fits here very well most of the time, and once you listen to a few songs you’ll agree that Ensiferum done any other way would be simply unfathomable. Killer songs are all over the place on here, and naming a personal favourite would be exceedingly difficult, so instead I’ll just mention a few of my top picks. “Hero of a Dream” is the obvious first choice, as it’s the first song on the disc after the instrumental folk intro, and right away it leaves you with a lasting impression of what is to come. It’s a roaring collection of folk riffs, symphonic guitar bombardment, and a bridge that you’ll never forget for the rest of your life. What a way to start a career. “Token of Time” follows that up with more of the same, yet somehow it doesn’t sound remotely similar to the opener in any way other than they both have a brutally destructive symphonic pace with folk riffs aplenty. “Guardians of Fate” catches you completely off guard with its raw opening riff, but soon settles back down into the typical Ensiferum bombastic style. It’s not as good as the former two songs, but still very good. Later on we come to “Windrider” and this is quite possibly my favourite Ensiferum song ever, in addition to being the best song on the album. The riffing is just plain awesome, and the folk guitar solos leave me dumbfounded with pure bliss. That brings me to another point about Ensiferum, and perhaps I can better explain their appeal as a musical entity this way: Think about brutally paced black metal like Emperor, the appeal is a raw, visceral one, and they storm over a hurricane, obliterating lesser bands like the storm that they are. Now think about a very emotionally powerful band like Tyr, who conjure visions of legends past whenever you listen to their music. Now, think of a band that plays both of those styles, within the same song. That is Ensiferum, and they are fucking awesome at it.
I can’t rave about this band enough. You’d be hard pressed to find many bands with this level of musicianship and originality these days, and Ensiferum is bar none the best Viking metal band out there in the music scene today. Yes, even better than Tyr, albeit quite different in approach. If you’ve never heard of this band, you are missing out on something very special. Currently Ensiferum have two discs out, and you can buy either one with my unconditional recommendation, as they are absolutely perfect. I don’t see how this band could possibly improve for future releases, but I could sure use a few more discs like their first two in the coming years. Join me, if you would, as I chant and dance around the stone idol, beseeching Ensiferum to never cease their crusade against false metal.
Written by: Requiem99 in 26.08.2004
I heard one of Ensiferum's songs on a metal web radio station (http://www.snakenet.com) and it immediately caught my attention. The more I listen to metal, the harder it is to surprise me, but these guys blew me away at first listen.
But first, introductions are in order. Ensiferum are a Finnish band that blend black metal, viking metal, and folk-style melodies. They're still quite obscure, even among metalheads. I can't fathom why. This is their debut CD.
What makes this album so great to me are the superb melodies. Their guitarists clearly have fantastic ears for melody, and the folk influence enhances the music greatly. The lyrics have a very clear fantasy/folklore/mythological theme, and are pretty decent, fortunately written and sung in fluent English. The band members are also skilled musicians. The guitars, as mentioned earlier, create sublime melodies as well as tasteful yet impressive solos and heavy riffing. The drumming is solid but somewhat in the background. The vocals alternate between black metal-ish screaming (similar to Dissection) and clean vocals that show a surprising amount of variety. They all come together to form a coherent whole that is rare in young bands. The songs vary in tempo, theme, and balance of vocals throughout the album.
If you like melodic metal, especially Finnish bands like I do, then you really can't miss with this band. I'm very surprised that this album apparently came out in 2001 and that Ensiferum hasn't gained more notoriety. It's only been released by Spine/Spikefarm at this point so it isn't easy to purchase outside of Finland. I can't recommend this band enough. They appeal to a niche, and I guess the only criticism I could think of them is that they aren't especially brutal or heavy, so it might not appeal to all metalheads. If you do like them, I'd suggest recommending them to all other metalheads you know, because what this band needs right now is some good ol' fashioned word of mouth. I'll be watching this band very closely in the future.
There aren't any bad songs on the album, but if I had to recommend specific tracks I'd say that "Token of Time", "Abandoned", and "Windrider" are my favorite tracks so far.
Written by: Heian in 19.12.2003
For, "Ensiferum," being their first full-length album, the group did a very good job. Vocally it is great in every possible way, combing harsh tones with softer ones. Transitions are frequent and vary between scratchy Black Metal shrieks to Power Metal chants. Both fit together perfectly.
Ensiferum bring a new form of Viking Metal different from other bands. At times almost a, “Children of Bodom,” sound is formed using strong Power Metal Riffs. Tracks on the album such as, "Hero in a Dream," forms flowing melodic metal tunes that mix in with the brilliant folk/lore type tunes of the masterpiece, "Goblins Dance."
"Goblins Dance," delivers well thought out lyrics, which deliver a story about Goblins and battles. The track also adds a medieval feel to it with the basic tune, that at times makes you feel like you are at and ancient festival dancing around and having a ball.
This album varies greatly the song's are all different and unique in their own way. I would highly recommend the buying of this great album. I am also expecting great works to come from Ensiferum in the years to come.
Written by: BoomStick in 09.07.2003
Can you feel it, the smell of freshness! This band is green, and its members filled with youthful passion. When I listened to this for the first time, my skies turned orange and I turned the volume up as loud as possible hoping for that my speakers would explode. This really brings back good memories from imagination role playing games back when I was a kid... There are many great tracks. There's excellent sounding guitars and no electronic sounds anywhere, which is a very good thing, the drums sounds are among the best there are, and the vocalist's clean singing is good, but his growling is even greater.
"Token of Time" - listening to the song feels like the walking on a long and hard journey, and in contrast listening to "Winraydaaah" feels like you're flying over those forests and roads. "Little Dreemaaah" makes me wish I had a long heavy doo, and I don't know what the heck "Treacherous Gods" makes me feel, but it's heavy and I sure like it! Then there's the speeding "Guardians of Fate", which reminds of "Winraydaaah" but melodically very different. There's a vast number of twelve tracks, and I'd say there are no particularly bad tracks on the album: an achievement which very few bands bands can be proud of. Some of the songs are a bit derivative from each others, but nevertheless all entertaining.
As this album is this great, I can barely wait for their next album to be released in July 2003.
Ensiferum's really "heavy" and very catchy unlike Windir and all other norwegian folk metal bands step aside. Their use of keyboards are minimal and guitars rule the music, unlike Moonsorrow and most other folk metal and symphonic black metal bands. Their quality songs add up 90% of the album, unlike Finntroll who have some excellent songs; but those add up 20% of the album and 80% are just album fillers. Their sound is also crystal clear, unlike Dimmu Borgir which throw in way too many sounds playing at once making the music drown in the noise. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the absolute kings of folk metal!
Written by: Mortido in 28.06.2003
This is the kind of cd you hope comes around more often. A great cd from start to finish and one that leaves you happy. This is that kind of cd. If you are unfamilar with this band, heres a quick run down. They play quite a rousing and entertaining brand of metal. Its a very good cross between viking and folk metal. The band is inspired by finntroll and it shows, but only traces of that influence show up.
Vocalist Jari is really great at what he does. He can sing lower growls, sometimes bordering on a black metal sound, to suddenly rousing chants and melody. Its really something you have to hear. The music is also great, with some kick ass moments, like in Battle Song. It starts off with a catchy bassline and then the double bass kicks in. Not only does the band put out the metal part of the music quite well, they throw in the folk music bits, which makes the songs even better. A good example of this is in the song Token of Time, where the first verse suddenly ends and the song bursts into something you might expect to hear in "Riverdance", then suddenly back with electric guitar and very un-folk like singing.
There are always those cds you own where you can't help but sing along. No matter where you are or what your doing, you get so into it you start singing along. This cd does that for me. Its hard not to chant along with the song, HEY HEY HEY, or with other various moments.Like said above, I want to go get a sword and be a viking after listening to this cd.
Written by: Thrash_Till_Death in 23.09.2002
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