Einherjer – Dragons of the North XX

[schema type=”review” name=”Einherjer – Dragons of the North XX” description=”Label: Indie Recordings” author=”Basak Günel” pubdate=”2016-11-25″ ]

Einherjer is a viking metal band. Hailing from Norway, the band has been founded in 1993 and even split up in 2004 but reunited back again. They are considered to be one of the pioneers of this genre; all in all, their aim has been to deliver the northern tunes and myths to the fans and bring back the Northern heritage to the scene. A highlight in the band’s career is definitely the debut album “Dragons of the North”, which has been released in 1996… 20 years after this release, the band decided to re-record this ‘highlight’ and celebrate the anniversary… Here comes “Dragons of the North XX”!

I am sure that this record will have different meanings for the hardcore fans and for people who are new to Einherjer’s music. For the die-hard Einherjer fans who have been following the band since day 1, this record might bring back old memories and you might find yourself paying a tribute to the old era of viking/black metal and even celebrate the success of Einherjer. In this sense, this album will be special for those fans and surely for the band as well.

Now for the fans who are not so familiar with Einherjer’s music, this record might sound quite monotonous and dull in the beginning. Especially if you are not familiar with viking metal, you might wonder whether this album is viking metal or if it’s a mixture of power/heavy/pagan metal.. But keep in mind that this is Einherjer and what they do is quite unique. Personally, it took a few spins for me to appreciate the record; one reason why I liked it was their way and interpretation of ‘viking metal’. Throughout the record, you will hear influences from symphonic black, folk and even classic heavy/power metal. While some songs took me to the classic BM era, other songs delivered that crazy 80s heavy metal vibe. I especially loved the vocals as they added that rawness and the ‘black metal’ vibe to the songs; they even reminded me of Abbath’s vocals! So I see this album as a mixture of the old sound with a modernized touch; with this record, they show once again their grand contribution to this genre and even the ones who are not familiar to this genre will like this album with more spins. Some highights are “Conquerer” (feel the ethnic vibe!), “Storms of the Elder” (a great example of the diversity with the symphonic BM elements) and “Ballad of the Swords”.

“Dragons of the North XX” is a great celebration for the fans but also for Einherjer… 20 years and they have made it! All in all, it’s not so easy to survive in today’s metal scene. Hopefully we will get to experience more years of some awesome viking metal with Einherjer!

Line-up:
Frode Glesnes – bass & lead vocals
Aksel Herløe – lead guitars & vocals
Ole Sønstabø – lead guitars
Gerhard Storesund – drums

Tracklist: 01. Dragons of the North 02. Dreamstorm 03. Forever Empire 04. Conquerer 05. Fimbul Winter 06. Storms of the Elder 07. Slaget 08. Ballad of the Swords 09. After The Storm

Links:
Einherjer Facebook
Einherjer Official