VALFREYA hailing from Montreal, Canada were formed in 2009. They play a mixture of symphonic Black Metal and Folk Metal. So far, they released three EPs and two full-length albums. Album number three is “Dawn Of Reckoning”, and it has a length of about 53 minutes. The album is an independent release. “Dawn Of Reckoning” is a concept album about the goddess Hel, based on the Norse mythology. Hel is a goddess of the underworld, where she receives a portion of the dead. The album starts with the title song, which is a tension-building, cinematic, and dark intro, seamlessly transitioning into “The Rise”. “The Rise” is a mid-tempo track with tight guitar riffing, a lot of double-bass drumming, and a few blast-beat attacks. All is put into a grim melodic framework, which is intensified by the prominent orchestral arrangements, driven by the brass. The vocals are growls, varying across almost the entire guttural range. The melodies are epic and have melancholic features. “The Rise” is the official lyric video, and the YouTube link is provided below. “Warcry” starts fast and with aggressive riffing and growls, erupting in a huge scream. It is a song with complexity in the structure with many twists and turns in pace and rhythm. As the song continues, the riffing becomes more thunderous, and the orchestral arrangements with the brass are very prominent at times. The melodies are grim and melancholic. There is an extended break finishing with a contributing violin solo. While the vocals are growls and screams, the chorus line is highly pitched and operatic. “The Fate” also starts fast and blast-beat driven, and the track is Folk inspired. It is mainly driven forward by the relentless drumming and the growls, whereas the riffing is devastating. The violin mainly contributes to the Folk vibes but is prominent throughout the whole track. Eventually the track finishes with the violin accompanied by the acoustic guitar. “The Fate” is one of my album favorites.

“The Fall” starts with an orchestral intro led by the strings, transitioning into track at measured tempo with crushing riffs. It does not take long until twists in tempo and rhythm kick in, driven by the blast-beats. It is a mixture of fast and aggressive parts and more epic and thunderous parts at mid-tempo. The vocals are a mixture of growls and cleans, where the clean vocals are about the medium end of the vocal range. During the epic parts, the vocals are intensified by highly pitched operatic female vocals. “Equilibrium” also starts with orchestral arrangements where the strings introduce the main melody. After a minute, the guitars, drums, bass, and growls join in, while the strings still play a prominent role for the track. However, the tight riffing and the double-bass drumming drive the song forward alongside the vocals. There are once again many twists in tempo and rhythm, where epic parts are followed by pummeling and fast parts. The break starts with an acoustic guitar, the violin, and the clean vocals. It is tension-building until the guitars and drums join in at some point, culminating in a short lead guitar and a violin solo at blistering pace. “Equilibrium” is another album highlight, not only because of the impressing length of more than eight minutes. “The Fallen Kings” starts with a blast-beat thunderstorm and the screams and growls at crazy pace. The tempo changes soon to mid-tempo, and of course, there are plenty of twists in tempo throughout the track. However, the fast and devastating parts are most prominent. Any arrangements are kept to a minimum and only the violin has an important contribution including a solo.

Although most of the songs contain Folk vibes, “A New Era” is one of those tracks, where Folk inspirations manifest in the leading melodies of the track. Here, the violin is an important element, even though it is at times in the background. The track is a mixture of the parts driven by the Folk melodies and fast, punishing, and pummeling parts led by aggressive riffing, the blast-beats, the double-bass, and the growls. The vocals combine clean vocals and growls. The track eventually ends epic with the Folk melodies and the violin. “Le Periple” starts with the acoustic guitar and the violin, transitioning into another crushing track at mid-tempo with a few changes in either direction. The melodies are spine-chilling and melancholic at times. One feature of the VALFREYA sound is that the violin often plays disconnected in the background and acts as a counterpoint. However, at the end of the track, the violin rejoins and takes on the lead to finish the track. The final song of the album is “Reus Es” and it starts with the acoustic guitar joined by the violin, transitioning into a huge scream and thunderous guitar riffing. The growls are almost like spoken words and they are accompanied by high operatic female vocals in the background. It is an epic and dramatic finale of the album where vocalist Crook has an impressive performance and grabs the opportunity to shine (and not only during this track). “Reus Es” is a fitting end to the album.

VALFREYA deliver an excellent symbiosis of symphonic Black Metal and Folk Metal. “Dawn Of Reckoning” is a concept album in 10 acts, where each individual song is a mini opera. The album is put into a spine-chilling melodic framework, led by an amazing vocalist, who keeps all tracks together with her versatility, her enormous vocal skillset and vocal range. Equally impressive are the drum and violin contributions, whereas the guitars and bass provide an excellent backbone to the tracks. The songwriting of the album is very mature and perfectly fits into the overall concept. The album is very well produced. “Dawn Of Reckoning” is a beast of an album and it is a must-have for all symphonic Black Metal and Folk Metal fans.