Heed the sound of the hordes marching, spears and swords in hand and an unquenchable fire in their hearts. The first full-length album from Irish black metal warriors Eternal Helcaraxe recalls those very sounds, with each of the eight tracks weaving tales of bloodied battles and undying will. Unavoidably grandiose in scope and emotionally impinged, “Against All Odds” is laden with poignant battle cries, sprawling string arrangements and searing buzzsaw riffs, all crafting a vast panoramic view but all the while still being a punishing and unrelenting black metal record.
Despite all its influences of melodic elements, at their core Cavan’s Eternal Helcaraxe are a black metal band that subscribe to the old school and a rich flavour of Norway and Finland run rampant in their sound with throaty rasps from the vile depths and grim, howling guitar work that can often be reminiscent of Sargeist.
First track proper, “One Still Stands Here” is a trove of emotive lead guitars and scorching vocals that lay down an equally beautiful and devastating opening salvo. “Invictus” is the album’s first instance of utilising a string section, and it’s a sprawling track that spreads it wings vastly and at this point you know Eternal Helcaraxe have truly laid down their gauntlet.
Lyrically, the band has different angles taken with viewing their battlefields. There’s a somewhat nationalist ideology with love of culture and country featured throughout the album. Such lyrics can be often be cringe worthy and even if presented in a too confrontational manner can seem xenophobic. On “Against All Odds” the lyrics simply become an afterthought, overshadowed by titanic riffs and war torn atmosphere, and certainly don’t conjure any negative social connotations such as xenophobia like some other BM acts can do.
A notable mention must be made of the utterly devastating, and equally captivating, drumming. Between the soaring string sections on “Invictus”, drummer Tyrith lays down pummelling blastbeats and intense rhythms, and throughout the album, layers each song with tasteful drum fills. Sporadically placed in the album are some chilling clean vocals, tastefully and expertly utilised. In fact, the trio of vocals from Praetorian, Maulgrim and Thule are all skilfully executed.
To end is the title track, the album’s ambitious 11 minute closer, opening with rampant and evocatively charged verses, laying down one last ode to battle and rounds off the album with a Primordial-like closing riff that hypnotically pulls the curtain on Eternal Helcaraxe’s stunning first album.
The album is out now from Abyss Records.
New Comments