With every step well thought and studied, music might turn to gold, such fortune that would eventually become a powerful asset for the years to come. Though writing music with the perception of keeping it natural and with an attitude of whatever comes along, and if it sounds good, keep it, a fine tuning is never a fault. The Italian ATLAS PAIN wanted the whole bowl of soup, to be everywhere in their spectrum and pushing forward to widen it as possible. Recently signed to their local Scarlet Records, their debut album "What The Oak Left" was released with a bang, a result of determination and hard work. Well, we know that they aren't the only ones that rolled their sleeves, yet it is good to mention from time to time what an artist is going through before a press release of a new album is posted for the public. Anyhow, for the Italians there appears to be a cause for a feast.

Attributing the fired up melodies and tremendous enthusiasm of such glorified acts as ENSIFERUM / NORTHER / ALESTORM, the Italians made sure that they wouldn't stop there. "What The Oak Left" ascertained ATLAS PAIN's planned multidimensional vision, maintaining the art of creating hooking Folk / Power Metal driven music with an additional layers of cinematic and symphonic elements. Even though still keeping it under the banner of extreme Metal and with the same narrative, their purpose to engulf other listeners may be successfully at hand. Nearly every part of the album's material is a small act, a short clip of events, presenting the band's universe, breaking boundaries and unveiling the secrets that it holds. The clutching melodies were the major player in each of the songs, most of them quite conventional and even slightly banal for the genre, yet their timing was no less than spot on. Whether through the lead guitaring, the keyboards and the song arrangements, ATLAS PAIN showed their advantage in forging a strong stance in the trendy continuum of Folk Metal.

"What The Oak Left" is one of those rare albums that I enjoyed an epic instrumental rather than any other song on the list. The final track, "White Overcast Line", is lengthy showcase of the band's abilities at composing a change of seasons. Not in a DREAM THEATER sense. Consisting of six acts, this melodious musical tale proved the band right, landing a high level effort that should become one of the totems of the genre. And if recommended songs you desired, you shall have them. The charged hymn "The Storm" and "Ironforged" are standout Power Folk Metal dramas, as if were the source for soundtracks of movies following the same themes. The heavier approach sounds so soothing alongside the crafted keyboards arrangements that made these two the band's strongest. Others to watch out for: "The Counter Dance", "From the Lighthouse" and "Bloodstained Sun".

Certainly one of the better albums of Folk Metal that I experienced. Without being a lackey, circling the same pile of flesh as lots of groups following the trend, ATLAS PAIN enhanced their music to become special.