October Falls - Marras - Sarastus

Guest review by Angry Metal Guy.


So, I have been admittedly slow to get on the Bandcamp wagon. Not for lack of harassment from Max—seriously dude, I get it—but mostly because I get a lot of promo and this means I don't do a lot of exploring. I'm way overloaded with music all the time and it makes it hard to keep up with anything that's not landing in my inbox. That also means I essentially receive free mp3 copies of everything under the sun. Rarely do I get physical copies, and I think that I just sort of missed out on the fact that Bandcamp did lossless files. Upon rediscovering (I think I may have been aware of this at one point), I have been frantically rushing around trying to get lossless files of cool shit I've already downloaded from Bandcamp (including Faustian Echoes from Agalloch, The Womb of Primordial Nature from October Falls [who it will be noted I like very much], and others).

Simultaneously, I wrote to Mikko from OF on Facebook and asked him where I could get a hold of the band's oldest material: the stuff that's like straight up Ulver and Tenhi love. As I'm currently vinyl impaired, I asked him where I could get high quality digital copies of their early material and he responded by creating a Bandcamp after asking about it on his Facebook page. Since I got quick results, I quickly jumped in headfirst with Sarastus (2007) and Marras (2005).

Marras is October Falls' debut record and it's a doozy. The album is pure, gorgeous and simple; consisting entirely of guitar, piano, strings and flute. That the album is influenced by Ulver's brilliant Kveldssanger should surprise no one, but it's more pure than that. While Ulver had grand ambitions of high art but were trapped in the bodies of young boys, October Falls is just riffing on the beautiful simplicity of harmonized guitars and the trickling of streams. It's the side every black metal kid when he isn't cursing God and planning church burnings—the one that looks longingly into streams and wants something simpler. The songs vary in length, but the heart-wrenching track "Marras I" is 6 minutes and 16 seconds, while the rest range between 2 minutes and 5.

Sarastus really is a 20 minute EP from 2007—the year before the mighty The Womb of Primordial Nature came out. Short and sweet, it's more of the same from Marras, but where I stand that ain't a bad thing. It's the simple beauty that keeps me coming back for it, and adding a few more gorgeous melodies and lush guitar harmonies and I have nothing to complain about. Sarastus is a little more bleak, in that it doesn't use as many varied instruments as Marras does; instead focusing mostly on guitars. Still, it's magnificent.

And for very little, one can buy these two records (and for nothing one can stream them) as well as Tuoni (2003), the "Polku" and "Usva" and "Marrasmaa" singles (though the latter comes bundled with Marras). I must say, I'm terribly pleased about all of this. And I think I've just gotten myself pretty addicted to Bandcamp. And everyone knows that there's nothing worse than a fucking convert.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

October Falls - The Plague Of A Coming Age

Review by Andy Osborn.


First, a primer: October Falls is the project of lone wolf M. Lehto, who’s been creating majestic metal for over a decade. He splits the band between two genres; melancholy Finnish folk that’s wholly instrumental, and a folk-inspired black/doom hybrid not unlike Agalloch. While both styles share aesthetic similarities, they are separated by release with folk albums denoted by a square logo and the metallic records with a circular design. But the pure folk years are long bygone and the last few releases have disposed of a logo altogether, showing that the project is concentrating one, whole sound.

Anyone familiar with folk/black hybrids won’t be surprised to find out that October Falls’ material draws inspiration from Finland’s natural beauty – this is the first album not using a wilderness photo on the cover. As stereotypically Cascadian as a one-man project influenced by nature sounds, October Falls is the real deal. The music is beyond emotional, you can feel the cathartic release in every note, every word. M. takes his music very seriously, which is why this is only the fourth October Falls full-length in the project’s twelve year existence. Lehto’s music is criminally underrated; the most prominently his work has ever been displayed was in a half-page Decibel feature in 2010. But with The Plague of a Coming Age, that is all set to change.

While sonically somewhat similar to 2010’s A Collapse of Faith, the new record moves the band in a direction that can only be described as melodic dark metal. Acoustic guitars are almost completely eschewed and the focus looks towards heart-wrenching melodies and woeful cascades of sound. Also gone are songs of double-digit length as M. Lehto and company spread their creativity across more tracks, resulting in the most dynamic and varied October Falls release to date. But the folk aesthetics remain in each carefully crafted riff and field recording; neither is overdone or lightly written, giving an unparalleled emotional weight to the album.

Undoubtedly, the cast of guests that appear on the album helped fuel the growth in sound the project has taken. This is the third record featuring Moonsorrow’s Marko Tarvonen on drums and first with Ensiferum’s Sami Hinkka on bass; Tomi Joutsen’s signature clean vocals completes the trifecta of borrowed Finnish talent. While the rhythm section is undeniable hefty, it’s the croonings of the latter that really stand out. Tomi first appears on the album’s title track, interspersing his angelic voice with Lehto’s rasps. But a few tracks later Lehto fully relinquishes control. On ballad-esque “Boiling Heart of the North”, the melody and melancholy grow so strong that that you think Mr. Joutsen had graciously given an unaltered Amorphis track to the release.

I’ve always loosely associated October Falls albums with different seasons, and the newest release sets itself firmly in the Spring. The sorrow and hardships of winter are still present, although fading, as a seed of hope is planted. Change is in the air like rain, damping spirits yet promising new life. On The Plague of a Coming Age, M. Lehto’s roots remain deep and strong but it’s clear his branches are reaching out to new heights.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Agalloch - Faustian Echoes - The Grey - The White

Agalloch has made a new song, Faustian Echoes, available at their Bandcamp. It is a single, two-part song based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s epic masterpiece “Faust.”. It is also the longest song Agalloch have ever written. Islander from No clean Singing said this about Faustian Echoes:

The piece works in a melodramatic, sturm-und-drang mode befitting its source material, with a central section recalling the melodic doom passages of Yob, and fluttering guitar leads that reminded me a great deal of the last Cormorant LP—which is always a good thing. Much like their previous 20-minute epic, “Black Lake Nidstang,” Faustian Echoes has a remarkable ability to hold my attention for its complete duration.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Also, you can now buy the companion EPs The White and The Grey at the Agalloch Bandcamp. The Grey from 2004 is a re-interpretation of two songs from their second full length The Mantle, and The White from 2008 collects seven lovely neofolk and dark ambient tracks.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]

Celestiial - Where Life Springs Eternal

Celestiial's Where Life Springs Eternal was added to the Bindrune Recordings Bandcamp. The album has been labelled funeral doom but while it has the sluggish crawl, there's none of the heaviness. Instead of distorted guitars and death metal vocals there are sounds of running waters and crackling branches. I think Where Life Springs Eternal is better described as nature inspired dark ambient/black metal. Here's a string of reviews from The Metal Archives.

[Go to the post to view the Bandcamp player]