Nordheim

Lost In The North

Written by: MST on 26/09/2012 19:26:36

When you see a bandname like Nordheim, you immediately get the idea that they're, indeed, from the north. And when their debut album is called "Lost In The North", the genre tag "folk metal" suddenly springs to mind. But what many people forget is that there are other northern countries than those in Scandinavia. Nordheim hail from the cold, grim and frostbitten land known as Canada, and "Lost In The North" is, indeed, a folk metal album.

Clearly influenced by the heavyweights of folk metal, Nordheim's take on the genre is characterized by mostly screamed, but occasionally growled vocals, fast tempos and keyboards. It is a cocktail that brings to mind genre peers Equilibrium in the less party-themed songs, and that's a good thing in my book. And when the opening track "Nightborn" reminds me of Wintersun with its overall fast tempo and epic guitar melodies, the album gets off to a promising start. The party-themed songs are epitomized by lead single "Beer, metal, trolls and vomit!", a song which is as braindead as it sounds, but as a drinking song it works wonders. An Alestorm influence really shines through here, as well as in most of the second half of the album.

The originality level on this release is pretty much non-existant, but to say that Nordheim are copying the genre peers would be an exaggeration. Instead, it would be fitting to say that "Lost In The North" is a homage to Nordheim's influences, and a good one at that. Whether you're into epic folk anthems or festive drinking songs (or both!), Nordheim are a new contender in the thriving folk metal scene. And with "Lost In The North" being from 2010, we may have another Nordheim album in our hands in the not so distant future.

Download: Nightborn; Beer, metal, trolls and vomit!; Glorious March
For The Fans Of: Equilibrium, Wintersun, Vanir, Alestorm
Listen: Facebook

Release date: 08.11.2010
Maple Metal Records

Related Items | How we score?
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

Legal

© Copyright MMXXIV Rockfreaks.net.