Heidenmetal

Indeed, the cover alone said it all. Almighty Thor swinging his big fat hammer over a frozen landscape full of magic and mist, at least that’s what it would look like if it wasn’t so clumsily drawn. Why musicians who are not of Scandinavian extraction devote full albums to praise the glory of their invincible Norse ancestors has always been beyond me. Bifröst was a folk-melodeath band hailing from Austria. Was genuine Austrian folklore not glamorous enough?

The cover said it all: it’s crude, it’s cliché, it reeks of unchanneled juvenile fervour. The guys had no ambition beyond playing the music they like. It’s sincere enough to be enjoyable. Never mind if the emphasis set on keyboards and orchestrations works too obviously as a pale substitute for the lack of inspiration in the writing of these long done-to-death mid-tempo pagan riffs, standard blending of run-of-the-mill melodeath with folk melodies, with an additional touch of black metal here and there. And before you ask, yes, it doesn’t even lack the mandatory flutes and accordion solos – most likely programmed as well. There are for sure entertaining compositions to be heard there. The arranger at least had some notions of harmony. Of course, all provided you don’t mind some sugar in your metal; too much sugar, sometimes. Taken to the extreme, the closing instrumental track consists in six minutes of synths only.

Never mind, again. The energy saves it. A few upbeat songs, like Die wilde Jagd, are nearly irresistible. Typically the one you’ve heard a hundred times before, but still cannot resist. The vocalist, especially, sounds one-percent dedicated. No vocal fioriture, harsh from the first bar to the last, medium-range growling style, often in duet with a more guttural guest vocalist; he may bark without originality, but he barks with enthusiasm. Sticking to German was a wise choice, allowing to at least slightly stand out from the dozens of identical bands doing the same in English. The sound is decent, showing this slightly confused, foggy vibe which both fits the Nordic theme and prevents the listener from delving too deeply into an unwelcomed technical analysis, which wouldn’t be to the benefit of the musicians.

Naturally, if the first songs have their charm, said charm quickly fades out. Too much repetition, not enough imagination, certainly not the album to be spun too often. Curiously, one track markedly clashes with the general atmosphere, the penultimate Schlachtklänge. A rawer sound, with drums lines featuring blastbeats, which are notably absent from the rest of the album. Is it a re-recording of an older track (Schlachtklänge was indeed the name of their debut release I haven’t listened to)? As if the guys, tired of writing at some point, chose to complete their album with recycled material. Just to confirm all this should not be taken more seriously than a pleasant interlude on the ever-icy postcard Nordic shores.

Highlights: Berserker, Die wilde Jagd