Looking at the black-and-white hand-drawn cover, don't rush to assume this is some old black metal work. Yes, black metal elements are present in the music of this Austrian outfit, but folk takes the foreground. Yet even saying that NERTHUS plays folk/black metal wouldn't be entirely accurate. All songs are divided into folk/black metal tracks and purely folk ones. Incidentally, the well-chosen album title, in my opinion, most precisely defines the stylistic direction. A wide array of ancient folk instruments transports you to the distant Middle Ages, the era of the exploits of glorious Germanic knights. Admittedly, they are all synthesized rather than real, as are the drum parts — which is a drawback. I'm sure fans of this sort of thing will enjoy the record very much. As for the band, we wish them the means to record live instruments and to diversify the music a bit more, and then, I'm certain, a true masterpiece awaits us.
Track Listing
- Behind The Horizon
- Battle Song
- Prehistoric Crafts
- Dark Triumphant Hordes
- Melodies Of Pride And Honour
- Masters Of Steel And Masters Of Fight
- Roving Clouds
- The Era Of Pureness
- Seeds Of Death
- Devising Of Black Strategies
- Hymn To The Glory Of Mother Nature
- The Black Fortress
- Before The Last Battle
- Where The Eagles Fly