Artist: Heilung
Title: Drif
Genre: Pagan / Neo Folk / World Music / Metal / Black Metal
Release Date: 19th August 2022
Label: Season Of Mist
Album Review
It’s been four years since ‘Ofnir’ and three years since ‘Futha’. HEILUNG, consisting of the triptych of Kai Uwe Faust, Christopher Juul and Maria Franz, have been summoning the past and casting their spells to form their modern homages to the ancients since 2015 when a magical brew of ideas started boiling in the cauldron that is Copenhagen. In that time, they have gone from zero to global acclaim as fast as a Bugatti Chiron accelerating from 0 to 200mph. But this change in velocity has gone smoothly it seems, without jolt. We are gathered here today, dear reader, to experience my experience of the experience that is ‘Drif’. This is their 3rd album and on this occasion the boundaries of the Northern European sphere have been breached and the influence of the other cultures of the ancient world have been allowed to seep in and infuse the creative process with other flavours. What is on offer here are Icelandic Curses, Roman tributes and Mesopotamian Exaltations without further delay, lets dive in and see what ‘Drif’ has to offer. For more information on HEILUNG you can follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/amplifiedhistory
The first track is called ‘Asja’. It’s about evil being chased away to be replace with prosperity and love. The overall sound is like a carved piece of wood. The sides have rougher texture to the middle which is buffed to a smoother finish. This feel is created for me by Kai Uwe Faust’s vocal starting and ending the piece whilst Maria Franz’s vocal inhabits the middle. And then there’s ‘Anoana’ which is airy, fresh and spacious. Maria’s vocal waspishly meanders and delicately sews its thread whilst Kai cuts in and out like gnarled twine. ‘Tenet’ is inspired by the Sator Square which is a square of letters designed to invoke curses or protection spells. Metronomic drumming accompanies a rolling hypnotic throw of words that is backed by another vocal that offers an alternative harmony to the first. The effect is erm, pleasing and weird. Middle Eastern and glottal feminine sounds writhe and swirl around a pillar of throat singing. Yes, weird but weirdly pleasing! 13 minutes of pleasing weird. The end opens out into plainsong
‘Urbani’ is a Roman Legionary marching chant. Hard masculine and hypnotic, it keeps things focused, determined, motivated and in line. It starts with birds cawing and what sounds like the moo of cows. But not your common old domesticated cow, something more primal. The chant itself kept in time by gladii bashed on shield. It’s mesmeric, but the twist, apparently is this is not a chant whilst marching to war, this was chanted at a triumph parade for Julius Caesar after he had beaten the Gauls, but, it is mocking him for his excesses. ‘Keltentrauer’ is a poem recited in German. It means ‘Celtic Mourning’. Voices in the background jockey or position as all sorts of noises and bangs fill in the gaps. All brought together by the Teutonic narration. It is about two armies facing each other on the battlefield One Celtic and the other Roman. A warrior steps forward and challenges their champion to a duel. Whoever wins supplicates to the other. The Romans baulk at this and start a rain of hell on the Celts. Their indiscipline is their ruin, Rome prevails. It’s as if Cicero was in the room with me!
‘Nesso’ sounds like a motorbike tying to start. And then delicate open throated vocalisations flick in like rain drops hitting parched ground. And then resonant bowing of string shivers and quivers like a bed of feathers laid for the voice to lie on. ‘Nesso’, old high German for worm and pain is a worm that crawls through the body, this being the spell to coax it out. The spell in this instance to help suck the pain out of the leg of a horse. ‘Buslas Bann’ - Kai Uwe Faust’s throaty vocal starts this. Its ominous and focused drum beats counter the vocal. Whelps in the background give a sense primal depth whilst ghostly voices shadow the main chant. I like this one a lot. It’s based on the Icelandic Bosa Saga and is a threat sung to a king.
‘Nikkal’ is the wife of the Hittite Moon God called Arma, who protected women during pregnancy. It’s derived from The Hurrian Hymns to Nikkal which are some of the oldest songs ever discovered. This one being around 3,500 years old. I like the pleasing tone to it which is soothing. It’s constructed around a harmonic interval which give it the shivery pleasing feel. The end of the piece morphs into ‘Marduk’, the king of the Gods of The Mesopotamians. This is a long worship song that goes back to circa 1894BC. The song has a consistent hum all the way through it along with bells and gongs that accent the journey from start to finish. The vocal is gruff and low as it recites names and meanings. I am now transported into a Mesopotamian Temple, tall of stone and dark of shadow. The fires on the torches flicker upon high poles as the flames flicker on the cold walls. The names echo in and around the stones, receding into the dark before jumping out into the light. My eyes are glassy and still, you can barely hear my breathe as the words lead me into the inner worlds. I become living stone. The end.
This is a good album, it still encourages you to delve into the world of the ancients, to absorb yourself into other times and mores. It still innervates the senses and the curiosity to acquire knowledge. In comparison to the other two offerings by HEILUNG I’ll say that this is true to form, the production values are the same, the authenticity is the same and the organic feelings are the same. No supplication to pop sensibilities here, I never doubted that for a second. And I am sure with time this album will grow on me to the same degree as the other two have. Why do I say that? Well, the other two albums I grabbed like a handful of sweets and played them to death, sucking all the enjoyment and feeling out of them as much as I could before going back and sucking on them some more. They never become tiresome. This album has not been sucked on as much because my mind has been distracted by other matters. So, my criticism, if any, is directed at myself. The magic is there, I know it’s there but I’m not fully feeling it yet. That’s why I’ve kept the rating high!
Update: After a few days of rest and head clearing the album has been listened to many more times. I’m now feeling it!
Tracklist
01. Asja
02. Anoana
03. Tenet
04. Urbani
05. Keltentrauer
06. Nesso
07. Buslas Bann
08. Nikkal
09. Marduk
Line-up
Kai Uwe Faust – Vocals, Percussions
Maria Franz – Vocals, Percussions
Christopher Juul – Vocals, Percussions
Website
http://www.facebook.com/amplifiedhistory
Cover Pictures
Rating
Music: 9
Sound: 9
Total: 9 / 10
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