FenI’ve come to realise that the world of Fen contains mystical atmospheres, a great deal of harshness and occasional melancholy in the moody, bleak and windswept landscapes. “The Malediction Fields” (2008) and “Dustwalker” (2012) are two of my favourite albums. I looked forward to another encounter with the mighty forces of nature on Fen’s latest offering “Carrion Skies”.

And lush depths and sweeping scenes are the greeting. Fen sound more like Enslaved every time I hear them, and “Our Names Written in Embers – 1” is no exception, immediately capturing a dangerous and misty atmosphere. The guitar and drums strike out in defiant unison. The turbulence dies down and now the echoing guitar line, which I really like, and the tapping drum are slow and melancholic. We’re heading towards doom and despair. But it’s massive and it seems as if we’re in a bit of a rush to get from one passage to the next. Part 2 starts with menace but the drum pattern reassures us without losing the desperately unsympathetic expanse. Epic waves ripple across the imaginary fields and woodlands. The images are of harsh winds, bleakness and loneliness. Darkness descends and the scene becomes yet more hopeless.

“The Dying Stars” starts quietly in the familiar lush and echoing tone. The atmosphere builds up. The highlight is a slow and reflective passage. The guitar rings and rebounds. Melancholy rises to majesty. I sense this is more about mood than continuity. “Sentinels” starts off less atmospherically but it still flows and the ever present sophisticated patterns and progressions are there. The higher pitched chorus shakes us up a bit. It’s ethereal and again reminiscent of Enslaved in its appeal to higher places. The rhythm is robust and aggressive as fires burn all round. After slowing for brief reflections, the vocalist’s harsh pondering leads to a dreamy harmony. I wasn’t sure what all this added up to, vivid as these individual tableaux are.

Large ringing swathes gather as the vocalist powerfully tells his story on “Menhir – Supplicant”. Again the reflective guitar section delivers images of great sorrow before building up to a majestic crescendo and then taking a long time to paint a picture of an expanding horizon. This wasn’t so interesting but we are then taken to a wondrous and evocative place as the shadowy “Gathering the Stones” commences. “Gathering the Stones” surrounds us and captures us with its carefully crafted musical wizardry and darkly suggestive scene. It is mystical as the overwhelming majesty of the instrumental work takes us finally to a world of shimmering cymbals and shadowy guitar work. “Gathering the Stones” evokes distant thoughts and indefinable faraway places. This is Fen.

Without a doubt this is another massive and carefully constructed work. There’s a lot to take in. I’d say that the individual parts of “Carrion Skies” are greater than the whole. The continuity went missing for me at times in the richness of ideas and creative expression. But it’s another mightily impressive album nevertheless.

(7.5/10 Andrew Doherty)

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