Review Summary: A Folk Melodic Black Metal Album of epic proportions!
Another chapter of epic proportions is unleashed by Evoking Winds upon the humanity in 2023 – Bald Mountain is available online for free for every black metal fan. And today I am going to tell exactly why you need to have it your life.
The band has recruited substantially more participants for the record from all around the world (from China to USA, frm Russia to Poland), and the addition of perspective shows itself in the expanded variety of composing and songwriting. While remaining a black metal band at its core, Evoking Winds is not afraid to touch and manipulate with borderline genres and methods.
Bald Mountain manages to remain a highly cinematic story-driven experience, building up the tension with intros, interludes and tempo changes, at the same time masterfully executing the volume balance. An eclectic choice of folklore instruments also adds up to their own signature style – paired with all kinds of male and female vocals. Sound here is an integral part, as it so thought out and clean it really positions the band to compete with the godfathers of the scene (like Summoning and the likes of it).
Among the highlights of the album I’d name the Bald Mountain itself – with its rich instrumentation, fantasy motives and uncompromising black metal approach (that drumming at the second minute mark is almost incomparable), the colossal closing riff with lower vocals leaves no stone unturned. The Oath is a slower number with more groove and clean singing, and the strings after 03 45 are just superb. Cannot miss In The Whispers of The Stars Far Away – almost eight minutes of a developing prog metal slab, that offers anything you might probably think of (acoustic parts, clean singing, cosmic black, keyboard bridge in the middle, and a fairytale outro).
Totally recommended for any music enjoyer – offering to listen to this strictly to black metal fans would be a crime.
