Review Summary: An ode to the beautiful lands of the Alpes
It’s one of those times where the cover art is very important. In fact, if it wasn’t for the cover, I probably would have never check this band out. Hailing from Italy, Enisum is a black metal band composed of Lys at vocals and guitar, Leynir at bass guitar, Dead Soul behind the drums and Epheliin for the female vocals. If you’re wondering where their name comes from, it’s actually Mont Musinè spelled backward, which is the closest mountain to Turin. Arpitanian Lands (Terre d'Arpitanie, Lands of the Alpes) is the second album from them, after Samoht Nara that came out in 2014.
“In my lands I can feel the soul/spirit of nature. / I would like to dream of better times. / In my lands I can see Nature’s creatures / In my heart I want to protect them”
From the very beginning of this record, you’ll understand that this record is all about nature, landscapes, atmosphere and emotions. The album is introduced by Epheliin’s beautiful and mystical voice before slowly evolving towards an atmospheric piece and then becoming the paradox of this album: aggressive drums and calm atmosphere. Lys screams his heart out with lyrics of love for his land. One could compare them to the Cascadian Black Metal scene although they do add a few aspects that are not usually present. The clean vocals introduction of Chiusella’s Waters feels like an indie folk type of singing but don’t be fooled, Enisum masters the mixing of calm and aggressive parts.
“Mother Nature, Men don’t understand… / They seek happiness, they have no respect”
Highlights from this record are easy to choose. For the most part, they all have a calm side that the other songs don’t have. Arpitanian Lands, Chiusella’s Waters, Fauna’s souls and The Place Where you died are the most memorable tracks from this record. As for the other songs, most of them are too repetitive. Alpine Peaks for example is the same formula repeated for over six minutes. While this doesn’t affect the listening experience as it is the second track, the atmospheric effect wears off after hearing the same issue with Mountain’s Spirit and Rociamlon one after the other.
“Sometimes I feel you inside of me and no one can understand this feeling / Nothing is important anymore when I’m caressed by your waters”
This record was definitely made with the love they felt for the Alpes. Their music felt like a hike through this beautiful scenery, and their lyrics are an ode to their land. Arpitanian Lands came out in 2015 under the label Dusktone and is definitely one the contenders for the Black Metal release of 2015.
