I consider myself hugely privileged to have been given the last couple of Winterfylleth albums and splits to review: I’ve seen them grow up in public from a pretty raw but uniquely talented grouping, with a little pinch of early controversy, into an absolute essential of English black metal and one who in the last year or two have seen their international profile and respect rise. With their last split with Drudkh and their remarkable participation in the folk project of ‘One And All, Together, For Home’ it seemed as though a great, keenly intelligent Northern crow was finally spreading its wings.
So where flies their fourth full length? Well the opening few bars of the title track hold a few hints. Firstly it is pure Winterfylleth surge; that wall of riffing expanding outwards like cold mist rolling across moors. The core sound, dense and uncompromising still and as evocative as ever, coming on strong and confident. As the song fully flowers though we are shown some direction of travel, just those shifts of progression more akin to finer trimming of the wing feathers than great plunges. The production helps; compared to ‘The Threnody Of Triumph’ it is richer, better at bringing out those eerie or melancholy melodies, but the seams of melody themselves are both sharper and brighter, unafraid to stand toe to toe with the riffs, utterly confident that the sound, the force and the power will support it with no let up. It’s almost as though when the melodies come now the entire band are taking a deep breath and pushing them outwards. This blazes forth to spine gripping effect in second song ‘Whisper Of The Elements’, rooting you to the spot as this keening flourish sweeps through you. The only word that comes close is ‘majestic’; the kind of majesty that lies in places, in valleys and on hillsides and through a history that rises with the mist.
It’s not all roaring winds though. Another subtle shift for me comes in the quieter passages and songs. When they appear as sections in songs like ‘Whisper Of The Elements’ they are so much more part of the flow now, natural calms or breathing spaces rather than prog tinged sudden tempo changes. They work within the song, not as a switch, and as a result they never jolt you out of the experience, more they pull you in, deeper. And when we get to spaces such as the opening to ‘A Careworn Heart’ we find a far more mature swell to the clean vocals, a harmony which is perfectly pitched. The semi-acoustic element has a deeper folk element to it rather than a post-rock drift, now. The song as a whole is wistful, rising and falling on those hazy tones but still growing out of a dense black metal guitar and haunting background cries.
I think it’s kind of round here that you have to pause and marvel at how beautifully this band have matured. This is an album full of confidence, and deft control, sure enough in their song-writing to layer the melody and harmony and slide through time changes with an effortless sounding flick of the drums. Listen to that epic, hair raising melody that closes ‘Foundations Of Ash’ and the manner in which it is built up to and just… Well, just smile.
‘The World Ahead’, a short acoustic number, is where perhaps Winterfylleth might have previously pulled in a violin but this time we are treated to the kind of guitar picking that makes me think that the time spent preparing their songs for the One And All, Together, For Home project has stayed with them. It fits so much better: Nothing wrong with a touch of violin you understand but this is a guitar rooted album and so retaining that instrument even on the acoustic keeps the flow and the feel of The Divination Of Antiquity in the same direction for me, keeping you in their world not twisting you around against the musical current.
They follow it with the magnificent ‘Over The Borderlands’, another song where the hard, generous Winterfylleth signature sound blossoms with heart rending melody and superb backing vocals. Then the slower but harsh tones of ‘Forsaken In Stone’ which is rapidly turning into one of my album highlights is ushered in. Again a perfectly pitched and placed melodic turn, a rhythm section that anchors it beautifully and those guitars cold, grey and grimly beautiful over the top; dew glistening on granite rocks in a cold October morning. They finish with the truly epic ‘Pariah’s Path’, a jagged and lonely walk through windswept black metal, harsh vocals and emotional melodic undertow that closes a remarkable album with definition.
Winterfylleth have done so much right here and not one thing wrong. The length of the album is spot on; no cracks so no filler. The flow of the album from grim tempest, through slower Autumnal vistas and moments of reflection is judged with maturity. The song writing is deeply memorable with hooks that will stay with you. Seriously, that last time I heard an ostensibly black metal album with so many threads of dark and, dare I say it, ‘catchy’ tunes it was Sargeist. Catchy not in a cheap way but with a cut to the bone edge. It really is quite the achievement.
On a personal note… Music is an odd thing: It moves us, effects us, brings us closer together, pulls us apart, makes us jerk or bodies around or stand still in rapt attention. It fills empty spaces and brings sharpness and colour to places and scenes already full. There is nothing like it. This album came to me at a time when feeling anything was hard or dangerous. Yet it worked its way inside and not only allowed me to feel it, but made me confident enough to do so. Not because it is a ‘safe’ album or a ‘predictable’ one, because it isn’t. It is because the sure footing of the band and the simple confidence they have gathered about them here is inspiring. It inspires trust.
Their finest yet, and I think their best is still ahead, too.
Winterfylleth own these hills.
(9.5/10 Gizmo)
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