King

A couple of years after their previous average release 'Helvetios', Eluveitie are back with a fifth offering (in their metal catalog). These heavy hitters of the folk metal genre were once very promising indeed but now seem to be slipping down the slope of mediocrity. This single called, well 'King', has fewer redeeming factors than earlier efforts from the Swiss band.

Where bands are expected to be innovative, Eluveitie move towards the opposite end of the spectrum by getting rid of any hint of creativity in favor of sticking to a standard template. Here, the production sounds sterile, having no organic feel whatsoever. It ends up sounding like a Dark Tranquility b-side with some folk melodies dangling in the background. Not containing any of the uniqueness that made the band successful in the first place, this song is indistinguishable from the multiple copycats spawned since 2008's 'Slania'. In an attempt to sound darker and more gritty than usual, the watered down distorted guitars present us with no riffs worthy of listen. I've always wondered why they use two guitarists in their lineup when they don't even make full use of one. The guitars are forgettable switching between lame chugging and generic melodeath leads. Bass, like in all the Eluveitie songs that came before this, is virtually nonexistent. Energy levels from the band seem low from start to finish. I suppose that the chorus is catchy to some extent.

Merlin Sutter is still the unsung hero of the band as his drumming stands out within the track. He is clearly the most metal oriented member in the band. Chrigel Glanzmann's vocals sound a bit different. Attempting a darker growl in a lower tone, he ends up shooting himself in the foot as the quirky and charged vocals of 'Spirit' seem a distant past. The folk elements take the prize for the worst aspect of the song. At times totally absent and oddly out place, they are really pointless. The hilarious instrumental bridge section (that's oh so mandatory) sounds more like a Corrs version of Toss the Feathers. It is much too happy for this sad track and actually sounds like two different tracks being played simultaneously. The lyrics, oh the lyrics! With a title like King one can imagine how abysmal the lyrics are.

Overall, suffering from hopelessly bad songwriting and an unimpressive band, this is one single no one should pay heed to. Hopefully the album 'Origins' will offer something better, but I remain skeptical. Stick to Eluveitie's earlier discography people.