Iceland - Old Temples Of Pagan Gods

Black folk metal is probably the nearest I can come up with to class this band, they are from Poland and that’s all I know about them!! There is very little out there on them, the myspace page is very low on information as well, so it’s with this little knowledge that I put on this album from Frenteuropa Records not really knowing what to expect. With such scant information I at least had no set preconceptions!

First track up was “Slawa” and it opens up very nicely indeed, with the sound of a waterfall falling in the background before the track bursts to life, normally keyboards don’t do a lot for me but on this release they are pretty decent and add a lot of atmosphere to it. There is some decent riffing here too on this opening track, good start. The next track “Northern Wind” is more of the same with a very similar feel and sound, but this time with added vocals. Very doomy they are too! The keyboards add to the atmosphere too, any more of liking these keyboards and I am in danger of becoming a prog rock fan! The vocals are low and doomy but you can actually make out the lyrics, which I think add to this release. The playing throughout is of a good quality with some really neat guitar work and some solid drumming as well. The keyboards add a sense of mystery and menace to the album giving it a great atmosphere.

All seven tracks are good and it rattles along at a nice pace, each song dove-tailing nicely with the last track, My favourite tracks would be “1000 Years Of Captivity” and the title track “Old Temples of Pagan Gods” but to be perfectly honest it’s a really good release with no duds on it at all.

Well this was a nice diversion for me, not my usual listening, I tend to avoid folk metal but this had a good dose of Black Metal which made it an enjoyable experience. I recommend you try and track this release down as it’s one mighty fine listen!

  1. Slawa
  2. Northern Wind
  3. 1000 Years Of Captivity
  4. Old Temples Of Pagan Gods
  5. The Law Of Nature
  6. Pagan Land
  7. Waiting For The Storm

Reviewer: donnieaural
Jan 11, 2012

Share this: