Metal Mix CD: Odin's Frozen Basketball Court!

(mix CD links below all of the 8 cent babble ramble by Rudo)

Ah yes, Viking/Folk Metal, one of my all-time favorites! For those uninitiated, one may ask, what in the F*&K is "Viking Metal?" Good question, my little 8 cent grasshopper... Simply, it is Metal music about Vikings! (doh!) Viking Metal transcends Metal genres, as long as it has something to do with Odin, long ships, the old Gods, burning & pillaging, drinking mead, freezing climates, mountains and fjords, the Gods who are old, pillaging & burning, mead, Odin, even longer ships, even older Gods, the freezing ass cold, Odin, and a lot more mead! For example, Swedish Viking band Amon Amarth play Melodic Death Metal, while the great Enslaved from Norway, who were one of the progenitors of the Viking genre, play extreme Avant-Garde Black Metal. Tyr from the Faroe Islands actually play a more Power Metal based Folk Metal, but are considered Viking Metal because of their Viking themes. Got it?


One thing that just about all Viking Metal bands have is a folkish element to their music (however, this is not an absolute requirement). So what the F*&K is Folk Metal? It is Metal music that incorporates traditional European folk elements and instruments, such as fiddles, flutes, lutes, whistles, accordions, harps, that weird sounding instrument that goes "boing, boing, boing" (can't remember, arg!), beautiful folkish melodies, and occasionally, beautiful female vocals sung by beautiful females, heavy, heavy guitars, brutish GRIM blackish growls, and soaring clean vocals, with some songs very fast and aggressive (great skanking music, BTW), and gorgeous ballads evoking a time long past when Gods were really Gods, and not some Televangelized Abomination.

Viking Folk Metal was one of the great evolutions of traditional EPIC Heavy Metal, born in the 1980's. Yes, there were songs about Vikings back in the Days of Yore (the 80's) by such bands as Iron Maiden, Manowar, Manilla Road, Faithful Breath, Blitzkrieg, etc. However, it took the GREAT Quorthon from Bathory to really get the movement started with their landmark release "Hammerheart" in 1990, which was all about Vikings, Vikings, Vikings (and not the Minnesota kind). Viking themes were quickly picked up Enslaved, who were one of the revolutionary Norwegian Black Metal bands in the early to mid-1990's. All of this started a musical movement, a most righteous one, as Viking themes fit this very intense and gnarly Metal most excellently. The incubation and birth of Folk Metal also came to pass in roughly the same time frame, and all of it cross pollinated together by a a handful of bands that became the quintessential "mast" of the Viking Folk long ship, say yeah!

So here is my latest mix CD to share with you, the very aptly titled "Odin's Frozen Basketball Court." Here in Indiana, it ain't exactly Scandinavia, so I had to find some reference point to bring my environment into the fjord. Basketball is the main sport around here, although it is far from my favorite. I set this basketball goal up in my driveway so Odin, Thor, Loki, Freya, and all could shoot some hoops when they come to visit! This disc is a weird bastard son, if ever there was one. I rarely, rarely go back and re-do my disc months after they were made. However, I made the original OFBC back in November 2007, while I also made another Viking Folk Metal disc called "Beard Of Storm" in March of the same year. To be honest, neither disc really played that well, and I was unhappy with both. So... I decided to crush them together into a better version of OFBC, which I am proud to share with you now.

Here is the track listing, with the band name linked to a web page where you can learn more about 'em, and possibly hear some more songs. The download links are after the track list.

Band/Song/Time/Album/Year/Country

1. Manegarm - Dodens Strand 5:04 - "Vredens Tid" <2005> (Sweden)
2. Solefald - Necrodyssey 3:47 - "Black For Death" <2006> (Norway)
3. Myrkgrav - De To Spellemenn 2:49 - "Trollskau, Skromt Og Kolabrenning" <2006> (Norway)
4. Heidevolk - Het Gelders Volkslied 3:42 - "De Strijdlust Is Geboren" <2005> Netherlands
5. Fjoergyn - Der Tag Der Wolfe 7:40 - "Ernte Im Herbst" <2005> (Germany)
6. Vintersorg - Dopt I En Jokelsjo 5:42 - "Solens Roetter" <2007> (Sweden)
7. Manegarm - Vaggvisa 3:34 - "Urmines Havd: The Forest Sessions" <2006> (Sweden)
8. Menhir - Das Hildebrandslied 8:58 - "Hildebrandslied" <2007> (Germany)
9. Wintersun - Beautiful Death 8:17 - "Wintersun" <2004> (Finland)
10. Moonsorrow - Jaasta Syntynyt / Varjojen Virta 30:10 - "V: Havitetty" <2007> (Finland)

Download Part One

Download Part Two

Things get off to a rippin' start with Manegarm, arguably the best Viking Folk band in the biz. This uptempo scorcher tipples the mead cart with searing fiddle, crunchy ass guitars, growly growls, soaring clean vox, and the inimitable drunken Viking choirs! Solefald, the resident futuristic Avant-Garde wunderkind spins backwards in time to an Icelandic saga, complete with a "Necroddyssey." When Lars "I play a Hammond B-3" Nedland sings, and Cornelius croaks, you know you got the good stuff goin' down. Myrkgrav is a one-man-band miracle, soaking up as much Viking Folk as humanly allowed in their succinct 2:49 Folk Metal Fest. Heidevolk are marvelously righteous, flute intro a sparkin', simple guitar melody quite straightforward, baritone harmonies swinging the alehorns side-to-side, and even some twin harmonic guitars (a rarity in Viking Folk)!

Fjoergyn's track begins with a famous symphonic melody borrowed from somewhere, but I can't place this piece of classical jazz, before a crunchy guitar interrupts and vocal harmonies are backed by some growled and whispered secrets. Very good symphonic Viking Folk sh*t this is! It is followed by the legend himself, Mr. V and Vintersorg, one of the founding fathers of the Folk Metal genre, even though they have Progressed far along the Avant-Garde path. On their recent "Solens Roetter" album, they step backwards and forwards at the same time to revisit some of their folkish roots. This song is so catchy it should be on the Top Viking 40, hosted by Casey "Thorstein" Kasem! I love the acoustic guitar intro!

All of a sudden things get very quiet, pretty, and somber with Manegarm's return, and the incredible "Vaggvisa," an all acoustic piece featuring the evocative vocals of guest Umer Mossige-Norheim (of Tva Fisk Och En Flask fame, and pictured above). She possesses one of the most incredible female folk voices in the history of this world (and most likely the next). She has worked with Manegarm on a number of their albums. On the all acoustic mini-CD "Urmines Havd: The Forest Sessions," she takes quite a few lead vox spots. Due props must be also be given to their main man vocalist Erik Grawsio, who's clean vocals keep getting better and better, making him one of the great male singers around. Then Menhir appear from Germany, and again we are treated with fantastic clean vocals, this time courtesy of Heiko Gerull, who's soaring baritone sends shivers up and down this spine. "Das Hildebrandslied" conjures up my Germanic Heathen heritage, and I smile! Wintersun are one of the darlings of the Viking Folk genre, and you can hear why in their "Beautiful Death."

All of this leads up to Moonsorrow's incredibly EPIC 30 minute "Jaasta Syntynyt / Varjojen Virta." Nobody does EPIC Viking Folk Metal like Moonsorrow. Their approach is so broad, so vast, so incredibly rich, and so incredibly cinematic, you would almost swear Cecil B. DeMille was in the band! The 30 minutes roll by like waves pounding the shore, shifting and changing, subtle in many places, very forcible in others. How Ville Seponpoika Sorvali can capture over 1000 years of Nordic wrath and pain in his intensely emotional bloodcurdling shrieks is beyond me. He must be possessed, and that is a good thing!

I post this disc for two reasons: 1) to share the listening experience 2) to expose you to these bands, and their music, which is far, far, far from the mainstream. SUPPORT THE BANDS! BUY THEIR MUSIC! Follow the links to their web sites! They deserve your attention! Here are a couple of links to great online Metal stores where you can buy their music!

The End Records
http://news.theomegaorder.com/index.php

Abyss Records
http://www.officialabyssrecords.com/

ENJOY!

Give Me 8 Cents,
Rudo

P.S. I apologize and feel incredibly sad and stupid that I did not include all of the umlauts in the song titles, band and musician names. That is bad, I will probably have a lousy seat at Odin's table in his Great Hall in the Sky!

Illustration by my son, Anvilhead Rudosson!

Metal Mix CD: The Iridescent Sky

My latest Metal mix disc to share with you is quite different from the previous one. "Island Of The Silver Skull" was a loving tribute to my 80's Traditional Epic Metal roots, played by newer bands who are keeping that flame alive. However, "The Iridescent Sky" is a collection of new songs from many of the bands and artists that I have been passionate about in the last 6-7 years of my middle-aged Metal Renaissance. It is intense dark music, that pushes Metal's boundaries in broad progressive strokes. This is not Prog Metal, ala Dream Theater, with virtuostic wanking overwhelming what little emotional content is felt in that music. It is METAL first, with Progressive influences, that owes a debt of gratitude to the great 70's Prog era, nothing more. It is METAL, it is atmospheric, it is dark, it is bleak and sombre, it is intense, it is inventive and creative, it is EMOTIONAL, and it kicks ass. Most of these bands are far from obscure in the Metal community, but they certainly are not commonplace in the musical mainstream, especially in the US. They deserve your attention.

Here is the track listing, with the band name linked to a web page where you can learn more about 'em, and possibly hear some more songs. The download links are after the track list.

Band/Song/Time/Album/Year/Country

1. Agalloch - The Pantheist 7:17 - "The White" EP <2008> (USA)
2. Primordial - Empire Falls 8:03 - "To The Nameless Dead" <2007> (Ireland)
3. Dark Tranquillity - Icipher 4:38 - "Fiction" <2007> (Sweden)
4. Novembre - Iridescence 5:11 - "The Blue" <2007> (Italy)
5. Opeth - The Lotus Eater 8:50 - "Watershed" <2008> (Sweden)
6. Ihsahn - Monolith 6:25 - "AngL" <2008> (Norway)
7. Vintersorg - Perfektionisten 4:15 - "Solens Roetter" <2007> (Sweden)
8. Manegarm - I Underjorden 4:11 - "Vargstenen" <2007> (Sweden)
9. Moonsorrow - Tulimyrsky 29:36 - "Tulimyrsky" (EP) <2008> (Finland)

Download Part 1

Download Part 2

The journey begins with "Pantheist" by Agalloch, a majestic and atmospheric acoustic based track from their limited pressing "The White" EP. Agolloch always brings you close to nature, evoking a somber, reflective walk through a forest or snow storm. Musically, this is closer to the expansive, progressive experience of their album "The Mantle," than their most recent release, "Ashes Against The Grain." It is sublime.

This segue ways into "Empire Falls" by Primordial, who take their swirling thunderstorm of dire warnings to the heart of the human tornado, with searing emotional cries and prophecies. Musically it is very dense and frightening, largely in part to the intensity and passion of vocalist Naihmass Nemtheanga, and the apocalyptic thunder of the band. Metal *does* have a conscience, and nobody exemplifies it better than Nemtheanga, and this band of brooding Irish revolutionaries.

Things move on to Dark Tranquillity and "Icipher," a mid-tempo piece that emphasizes the musicality of this legendary band. It is not one of their barnstorming stompers. Rather it is a dense heartfelt piece, emphasizing the emotion in Mikael Stanne's growls. Here is a case of where keyboards effectively add texture and feeling, with the whole band working as an integrated unit, evoking dramatic emotion through their collective performance.

Italy's Novembre are masters of melancholy, with the sad and plaintive clean vocals of Carmelo Orlando, who then shakes the roof tops with his intense dark growl. "Iridescence" is iridescent, with its colorful keyboard fills, and bright evocative drumming. Again, nothing is overplayed, by a band that could wank as virtuosos, but choose feeling over technical brilliance.

In most ways, Opeth need no introduction, the biggest band in Extreme Metal today. They have become polarizing in the Metal community, with those who unabashedly love their Progressive Death Metal, and those who are bored silly by them, loving to take potshots at the reigning kings. "The Lotus Eater" will change no one's opinion because it exemplifies what Opeth does best, playing a sophisticated Death Metal that is consumed by their love of old Progressive Rock. The trick is that they do it with so much emotion, and so many rich musical ideas. If people don't get the quick changes of music from one little trip into another, then they don't get Prog. Too bad. This track is inspired and evocative, and *nobody* growls like Mikael Akerfeldt, and nobody has such a beautiful clean voice. Opeth has always been about contrast. Here it is.

Ihsahn's "Monolith" segue ways in beautifully, with its proggy intro that then turns into a rich Black Metal riff with drum blasts, followed by Ihsahn's patented Black Metal rasp. What makes it different from old Emperor (his main band) and the legions of Black Metal hordes, is his totally inventive instrumentation, most evident being the colors and textures of keyboards, acoustic guitars, and clean vocals. This is very Prog too, but like Opeth, it carries the intensities of their Metallic roots. For Opeth it is Death Metal, for Ihashn it is Black Metal. And it kills!

On his "Solens Rotter" CD, Vintersorg coalesced his avant-garde Metal and Prog tendencies with his own brand of Scandinavian Folk Metal in a remarkably effective manner. The results are heard in "Perfektionsten," a tune that mixes his sharp growl with his searing and gorgeous clean vox, with a folkloric melody that is accented by avant-garde accompaniment. The programmed beats and keyboard accents remain supportive, and do not get in way of the amazingly catchy tune that should be played on the radio! HAH to that idea!

"I Underjorden" by Manegarm is Viking Folk Metal at its finest, harsh and intense, beautiful and melodic, precise and wonderful, propelled by blistering drum beats and soaring fiddle work. Scandinavia. Fjords. Nordic history. Runes. Stormy seas. What more can I say? And this leads perfectly into...

... the EPIC intensity of "Tulimyrsky" by Finland's Moonsorrow. Their music, and this track, is nothing short of cinematic. Their whole musical history and evolution is presented in this 29 MINUTE EPIC. Harsh Black Metal from their early days, sumptuous keyboard driven Viking Metal, very traditional acoustic Scandinavian folk complete with prominent accordion, drunken Viking choirs, warm 70's Prog leanings with analogue synths and long, evolutionary song structures, and their recent uncompromising turn towards harsh and grim EPIC songs that are never shorter than 14 minutes, and typically are 20 to 30 minute cinematic masterpieces. "Tulimyrsky" has more pronounced musical changes that the epics on their previous album, and brings back the accordion, keys, and blackened vocals of their past. And while it goes on for 29 minutes, I am never bored. I am immersed in a musical and cultural history that makes me just about jump out of my present skin and life, and back into a past I know I lived in... A secluded fjord, weathering storms on a Viking knarr, revering the old Gods, and clutching the ancient earth with my fingers. Yeah.



I post this disc for two reasons: 1) to share the listening experience 2) to expose you to these bands, and their music, which is far, far, far from the mainstream. SUPPORT THE BANDS! BUY THEIR MUSIC! Follow the links to their web sites! They deserve your attention!

ENJOY!

Give Me 8 Cents,
Rudo

P.S. The cover photo was taken by me with my 8 cent phone cam, and jazzed up with an ancient version of Adobe PhotoDeluxe editor.

Metal Mix CD: Island Of The Silver Skull

Ever since I got my first stereo tape recorder, a Sound Design 8-Track deck in 1974, I have been putting together my own mix tapes, or now mix CDs. It has been a non-stop part of my life, and I really can't think of anything more fun or creative to do. One of my goals for this blog was to inflict some of these homemade collections on you, much to my sadistic glee. Too bad... You deserve it, and I can finally get some of this off my chest and into the eardrums of folks who would like to hear 'em!

Even though I am an OLD MO and am prone to wax nostalgic at times, I do not live in the salad days of the past, forever stuck in old glorious musical eras. Sometimes I dread reliving certain scenes and sounds, and duly want to stay rooted in the Here and Now. So I do! But there are times I am attracted to an OLD SOUND being recreated and revitalized by YOUNG MO-FO's. Such is "Island Of The Silver Skull." An old sound being revived by newer bands.



I f*&king love Traditional Epic HEAVY METAL, and ate it, drank it, slept it, smoked it, and kissed it back in the glorious 80's, in the proverbial Days Of Yore. Ever so often, I get nostalgic and pull out the old classics, and revere them in all their ceremonious glory. But lately I've been GROOVING on 80's style Traditional Epic Heavy Metal, performed by a bunch of talented young'uns, who bring the bacon home when the bugle is called.

And it kicks my god-damn egg. Actually, I made this disc fast as hell. Once I heard this material, I just *HAD* to get something down on CD as fast as possible. And it had to be really well done, so I was up for the challenge!

Here is the track listing, with the band name linked to a web page where you can learn more about 'em, and possibly hear some more songs. The download links are after the track list.

Band/Song/Time/Album/Year/Country

1. Ironsword - Under The Flag of Rome 4:57 - "Ironsword" <2002> (Portugal)
2. Battleroar - Oceans Of Pain 10:23 - "To Death And Beyond" <2008> (Greece)
3. Crystal Viper - Island Of The Silver Skull 5:43 - "The Curse Of The Crystal Viper" <2007> (Poland)
4. Spirit Web - From A Prince To A Pauper 7:49 - "Far Beyond The Visual Mind" <2003> (USA)
5. Pharaoh - Buried At Sea 7:00 - "Be Gone" <2008> (USA)
6. Crescent Shield - The Last Of My Kind 7:20 - "The Last Of My Kind" <2006> (USA)
7. Rekuiem - Werewolf 8:24 - "Time Will Tell" <2006> (UK)
8. Overstep - Karrig An Ankou 8:04 - "Karrig An Ankou" <2001> (France)
9. Manilla Road - Totentanz (Dance Of Death) 7:56 - "Voyager" <2008> (USA)
10. Sacred Blood - Gates Of Fire 11:41 - "The Battle Of Thermopylae: The Chronicle" <2008> (Greece)

Download Part 1

Download Part 2

The disc starts of with the Neanderthalic Primal Poundations of Portugal's Ironsword, who beckon the listener with the age old proverb, "If you live by the sword, You will die by the sword!" UNK! This is followed by Greecian urns Battleroar, who perform a majestic epic, in three movements. The first is classic Epic Metal gesticulations, followed by a gorgeouoso electric violin interlude that is quite oceanic, all leading to the obligitato and perfectly executed searing majestic guitar solo, rooted in beauty and restraint. Crystal Viper sports a female vocalist that sounds like a much more TR00 Metal version of Lee Aaron, with a healthy dose of Doro thrown in for good measure. Spirit Web shoots this baby into the stratosphere with the righteous "From A Prince To A Pauper," which stands side-by-side with any ultimate 80's Vlassic Classic. Pharaoh then buries me at sea with their mob rules approach to harmony and integrated sounds. The Crescent Shield track sounds like a long lost song off of an old Blitzkrieg/Satan or Jag Panzer vinyl. I really freak out on their "The Last Of My Kind" CD!

Rekuiem turns up the 8 cent nodules with "Werewolf," sung by an old lead singer of Tredegar (Tredegar? Tredegar!). Overstep is from France, they sing in French, and it sounds weird and wonderful. They can crank. "Karrig An Ankou" is an 8 cent gas. And of course, MANILLA F*&KING ROAD do NOT need any INTRODUCTION... This is from their brand new album, and it belongs here to provide some much needed perspective (or too much f*&king perspective!). Mark St. Shelton is GOD! And lastly, things are capped off by the sacred Sacred Blood, who also are Greecian urns, and this is a mighty epic, a proper summative statement, and a place to hang your hat at the end of this glorious ride through the depths and slime of TR00 Epic Metal in the 21st Century!

I post this disc for two reasons: 1) to share the listening experience 2) to expose you to these bands, and their music, which is far, far, far from the mainstream, and quite removed from what is considered to be the hippest movements in the Metal scene. SUPPORT THE BANDS! BUY THEIR MUSIC! Follow the links to their web sites! They deserve your attention!

ENJOY!

Give Me 8 Cents,
Rudo