Bal-Sagoth. This name rings a bell. I remember the look on my face when I first saw their track titles. As for the music, symphonic Black Metal to the bone! What else could you expect from these guys? War, pain, death and sin, everything compressed down to the size of a CD.
Bal-Sagoth existed as an idea from 1989 but were officially formed in 1993. Due to delays, their first record, A Black Moon Broods Over Lemuria, was released in 1994. Devastating debut! Keyboardist Jonny Maudling joined My Dying Bride as a session musician for a European tour during 1999. Bal-Sagoth went through many lineup changes to reach their current form.
After 13 years of existence, Bal-Sagoth deliver us one more all out attack album. When you listen to this record (as every Bal-Sagoth record), it's like being in a battlefield... Dark riffs, surrounded by epic melodies. If you expect to listen to something different, you won't find what you're looking for. Bal-Sagoth have kept their style in every single album they released. You will find everything you want to hear from this band. These guys stick to what they believe in. Speed, vocals straight from hell, heavy, symphonic elements and pure rawness. This album is the last of Bal-Sagoth's hexology. From their first work, they seem to have found the perfect soundtrack for their pagan approach to music. I'm just curious about one thing. Where the fuck do they get all this inspiration to compose so many battle hymns (or something like that)? They are unique in what they do. They can take you away, to another world where dragons soar above the land, battlecries are heard everywhere and castles are being burnt. When the CD finishes and you return to planet earth, you just listen to the CD one more time (or two, or three...).
If you like Ensiferum and Finntroll then be sure to invest your money on them. The only thing left, is a desire to see this band performing live. They surely kick ass on stage...