Review: Lör – Edge of Eternity

Style: Power/Folk (Mixed vocals)
Review by: Andrew
Country: US-PN
Release date: 15 May, 2020

NOTE: This album was originally included in the May Part. 2, 2020 issue of The Progressive Subway

I always love surprise releases. Eliminating the suspense period and delivering new music straight to my ears — what’s not to like? Avenged Sevenfold did it back in 2016 with The Stage, which became one of my favorite albums of that year. And now, in 2020, American prog-folk-power band Lör did it with their album Edge of Eternity. Having only released one album before — 2017’s In Forgotten Sleep, Lör are definite newcomers onto the scene. However, ever since I first heard In Forgotten Sleep a couple years ago, it’s been one of my favorite albums. A surprise release from Lör was one of the best pieces of news I’ve ever heard.

That’s enough exposition — let’s jump into this thing. Clocking in at a brief 25 minutes with only five tracks, one could hardly call Edge of Eternity an album. But there are enough ideas packed into the short runtime for a full-length and more. Lör’s debut is notable for seamlessly blending power and folk metal with a strong progressive edge, and Edge of Eternity continues that trend flawlessly. The first and second tracks display Lör’s power metal prowess while still honing their progressive blade ever sharper. Blazing riffs, ripping solos, and progressive song structures, these two tracks are wonderful introductions to Lör’s core sound. 

Third track “Ruin” is something else entirely. Lör’s heaviest song to date, it wastes no time getting started with its main riff before introducing what sounds like plucked violin over the riff. “Ruin” goes so many places throughout its 7 minute runtime that it almost feels like an album on its own. After a couple of verses, it quiets down into a somber, tense passage, building tension before building up again over a ripping lead guitar line. The passage comes to a climax with breakdown heavier than an anvil and releasing effortlessly into a more energetic version of the original somber passage. After a solo, Lör switches up into a waltzy clean passage over a beautifully orchestrated backing track. This then builds into another massive climax similar to earlier in the song. The absolute highlight of this song and Lör in general is their mastery over tension and climax. Their builds are huge and the releases are beautiful and enormous as well. 

The next track, “Relic”, is a beautiful ballad highlighting singer Tyler Fedeli’s fantastic vocals. Primarily acoustic, this track slowly builds up in intensity until it reaches a peak and finally explodes into a final chorus. Finishing up the album is the title track “Edge of Eternity”. Originating as a track from Lör’s 2010 demo, “Edge of Eternity” is the definition of the word anthemic. From the urgent and massive riff to the gang vocals in the chorus, this is one song that I would definitely play while riding into battle. I’ve heard some criticism of the production of the album — I personally don’t find anything wrong with the mixing or mastering but I’ll mention this in case it stands out to anyone else. 

Lör came out of nowhere with Edge of Eternity but managed to effortlessly carve a permanent home in my album-of-the-year list. For fans of power metal, folk metal, prog metal, or basically just music in general, Edge of Eternity is one album you do not want to miss. 

Recommended tracks: Upon a Withered Heart, Ruin, Relic
Recommended for fans of: Wilderun, Aether Realm, Aeternam
Final verdict: 10/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Metal-Archives page

Label: Independent

Lör is:
– Tyler Fedeli (vocals)
– Peter Hraur (guitars, orchestrations, backing vocals, harsh vocals)
– Nick Bonsanto (bass, backing vocals)
– Greg Bogart (drums)
– Matthew Bartlett (keyboard)