Amaranthine

Much is to be said about Gwynbleidd's music. Compelling, powerful, and emotional are all accurate words to describe this progressive outfit. Such a band that can combine black metal, death metal, folk and prog into one great debut is worthy of such praise. Gwynbleidd's debut titled "Amaranthine" is a wonderful and poetic look into to realms of music.

The main thing that makes "Amaranthine" such a special album is the solid use of all the influences that Gwynbleidd focuses on. Black metal, death metal, prog rock and folk music are all conveniently assembled into the music.The first two tracks titled "Nostalgia" and "New Setting" are more centered around black and death metal. The faster riffs and the harsh death growls are used more commonly then on the other two songs. Death metal growls and the black/death metal riffing dominate the majority of the music, but the progressive edge is always strong. During these tracks, the progressive asset is portrayed by the soft guitar breaks and the tribal chanting during "Nostalgia." Unlike the previous songs, "The Awakening" and "Lure of the Land" are based around folk music and are more chilled out then the previous two songs. "New Setting" and "Lure Of The Land" replace most of the black and death influences with folk and more proggressive parts. The guitar and vocal work are much softer then before, but still contain some heavy riffing and harsh vocals. The drumming doesn't change between the songs, but it always remains good. The drumming is more complex then a typical progressive band because of the time changes and patterns in "Amaranthine."

Gwynbleidd's style helps keep "Amaranthine" interesting with everything that is sampled in their music. I enjoyed listening to "Amaranthine" and can't wait for future releases by this band.

This review was orginally written for: http://www.Thrashpit.com