By Monk
Time to pour another horn of mead, throw a few freshly-hewn elm logs on the fire, and revel in the retelling of some of our favourite ‘Myths Of Fate’ as Leaves’ Eyes once more raise a toast to the ancestors and pay homage to the brave men and women of centuries long gone by with their suitably epic and resounding ninth studio album, which truly takes us on journey back through those mists of time while at the same time ensuring we keep our feet very firmly planted in the soil of today, axe in hand ready once again to fight off the enemy hordes and reclaim our birthright of entry into the company of our fellow warriors in the drinking halls of Valhalla.
Four years after taking ‘The Last Viking’ on his final journey, Leaves’ Eye once again set sail on a voyage of musical discovery and exploration, constantly pushing and expanding their boundaries with the incorporation of new elements, such as Eastern European folk music (in itself an historical nod to the origins of the Viking peoples), into their characteristic blend of OTT operatics, dark-edged symphonics and soaring power metal tropes in a way which is as effortless and relaxed as a well-travelled troubadour pulling up a pew at our ever-welcoming fireside and starting to entrance us with a well-remembered poetic recitation of those beloved tales.
Leaves’ Eyes paint cinematic sonic soundscapes which befit the thematic emphasis of this compact but all-encompassing thematic , from the sweeping raising of the magic sword of Tyrfing on opener ‘Forged In Fire’, which grows and builds from a dense, forbidding ride into destiny into a bombastically defiant double bass earth-scorching firestorm, to the triumphant and equally defiant final voyage into the realm of the dead, with its huge climax and sudden finality.
.After taking us on a suitably epic voyage to the ‘Realm Of The Dark Waves’, which washes over us with a combination of richly bombastic power metal vainglory and delicate flute-led folk interjections, all beautifully accentuated and counterpointed by Elina Siirala soaring solo vocal performance, they ask ‘Who Wants To Live Forever?’ on one of the album’s true standout songs – and given the complete power and cohesion of this opus as a whole, that is a feat in itself! Combining all the traditional folk/power/symphonic/Viking tropes into a solid four minutes and 21 seconds, ‘Who Wants…’ hits on every level and summarizes everything you need to know about this album…
Until, that is, you get hit square in the chest and between the eyes (or should that be ears?) by the absolutely Überverse-levelling power of the ‘Hammer Of The Gods’, which combines a deceptive fragility with a furious rage that even the most ardent berzerker would struggle to capture.
All that remains to pour another horn of mead, refuel the fire, raise Mjolnir in another toast to the ancestors and and once again revel in the tales of yore, the stories of bravery, bravura and sacrifice, the ‘Myths Of Fate’ as retold so eloquently by these true craftsmen of the modern bardic craft.
- ‘Myths Of Fate‘ is released today (Friday 22 March).
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