Register Forgot login?

© 2002-2024
Encyclopaedia Metallum

Privacy Policy

Hades Almighty > Alone Walkyng > Reviews
Hades Almighty - Alone Walkyng

Excellent - 90%

totengraeber, December 1st, 2007

“Alone Walkyng“ is a pretty advanced recording for demo standards to begin with and the boys from Hades could definitely teach you and your shitty garage/bedroom band a thing or two how to get started: learn how to play your instruments properly and to put your (yet) imperfect instrumental skills to good use; invest time into songwriting and just don´t throw a couple of ideas into a pot, stir once and call the resulting mixture a song; save some money and book a decent studio to get a nice representation of your musical efforts. Do all this and chances are high someone like me will sometime enjoy your stuff and write a favorable review in one of the Internet's most proficient music encyclopedias (even if it just 14 years after initial contact with your record).

Hades has all of the above. A warmer than usual Grieghallen sound, memorable and competently executed riffs, powerful drumming and songs that are consistent in itself,tell a story and keep you entertained as long as they last, again and again and again...

Hades drew their influences for their first releases quite obviously from “Blood Fire Death”- and “Hammerheart”-era Bathory and mixed them with the spirit of adventure that prevailed in the Norwegian scene between the early and mid 90s. The resulting songs present on “Alone Walkyng” are best described as slow, epic, escapist and monumental Black Metal and if you are familiar with Enslaved´s “Norvegr” you´ll get the general picture.

The first two tracks “Unholy Congregation” and “Hecate (Queen of Hades)”eventually made it onto their debut “...Again Shall Be” but the by far best song here (and in the whole career of Hades) is “Alone Walkyng” itself with its excellent acoustic motif, marching electric main riff and climatic solo. It´s rather sad that they never got the recognition they deserved and that is to be seen of one of the prime bands in the first wave of Norwegian Black Metal, but life is unfair more often than not.

Grab this if you get the chance or you are missing out on one of the best demo recordings in the history of Norwegian Black Metal. Excellent, indeed!