By Bona Pjarren
SAOR, in Scottish Gaelic, means free, without obligations, unconstrained, characteristics which are intrinsic to the music of the musical entity spearheaded by sole member Andy Marshall. As a lone wanderer proudly shouting the tales and myths of his people, his culture and his region from the tops of misty Caledonian mountains for the wind to carry, Andy has carved a solitary, yet strikingly inspiring path with SAOR. Now, nine years after his debut offering, he has returned with ‘Origins’, the project’s fifth full-length album that delivers his profoundly atmospheric hybrid of black and folk metal, inspired by the myths and tales of the Picts, that takes the listener deep into the Scottish heartlands. So with that said, let’s get into the album review.
‘Call Of The Carnyx’ is a brooding first track that slowly introduces the folk metal elements that are to come. It is undeniably Scottish in its musical approach with a strong folk element delivered by some soaring guitar work. Nice harmonized vocals embellish this very catchy and intricate track. The black metal elements are brought to the fore with some excellent and frantic drumming. There is, in conclusion, a lot to recommend in this highly evocative piece.
‘Fallen’ has a certain tribal feeling to the drumming and is immediately accessible with strong riffs accented by extreme vocals. Again the guitar work carries all the melodic and folksy elements. A well crafted and again evocative track, this music has Highlands of Scotland written all over it. I can imagine that live this would really get the mosh pits kicking off.
‘The Ancient Ones’ is next up. It has a lovely acoustic introduction with a lilting Celtic style that acts as a springboard into a far more energetic black metal section. The dual vocals herald a more laid back section before launching again into a maelstrom of metal attitude. ‘The Ancient Ones’ takes the listener on an epic musical journey celebrating the ancient gods of the Picts. It is packed full of ideas and would probably take more than one listening to fully appreciate everything that is going on.
‘Aurora’ introduces itself with a more laid back introduction. Sombre guitars soon power it into the main body of the song. The guitar work for the whole album has been well thought out and really carries a lot of the themes presented by Andy. The range and textures of his music are simply stunning and a credit to his musical story telling abilities. I really loved the harmonized vocals that bring a certain dark Gothic vibe to the proceedings. There is also some nice whistle sounds to really ramp up the Celtic feel and augment some beautiful flowing guitar work. ‘Aurora’ is a very strong track.
‘Beyond The Wall’ is straight into the black metal mayhem. I assume the wall refers to Hadrian’s Wall and the track does have quite a military feel to it. ‘Beyond The Wall’ is packed with driving metal attitude and is, for the most part, an assault on the senses. It does fit well with the rest of the album despite being the most outright black metal track on the album. Some nice keyboard work helps to soften the edges later in the song as it relents into something more thoughtful.
And so the album concludes with ‘Origins’, which apart from being the title track is also the lead single accompanied by a video released on YouTube, and that is also worth checking out. ‘Origins’ gallops in with a very pleasing folk style riff, which is quickly augmented by some powerful drumming. I can see why they have released this as a YouTube video as it is a really good advertisement for the album as a whole. Packed with ideas it flows forward effortlessly from one theme to the next. There are lots of catchy riffs to keep the listener’s attention focused. Again the Scottish feel of the album leaps to the fore, particularly as the guitar work does a more than passable impression of the bagpipes.
So, after all that, you might conclude that I liked this album… but, you would be wrong! I absolutely loved it! It is a classic piece of folk metal that has really endeared itself to my heart. ‘Origins’ has everything that you could want from a memorable piece of folk metal. So buy this album! You won’t be sorry.
- ‘Origins’ is out now.You can get your copy HERE.
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