Style: atmospheric black metal, psychedelic doom metal (mostly hars vocals)
Review by: Sam
Country: US-CO
Release date: 28 May, 2021
A great aspect about reviewing for a site dedicated to progressive metal is that you don’t have to be very strict about genres. Most of what we review falls in the genre progressive metal, but every once in a while we find stuff that while missing genre hallmarks, is very progressive in spirit. This album is the latter. I was drawn in by the apparent combination of stoner dooIm, atmospheric black metal, psychedelic music, and folk. It seemed like a genre combination too unique to pass up upon, so here we are.
The Flight of Sleipnir is quite a long-running band. This is already their 7th full length since forming in 2007. The band was initially a studio project of two to share their love for metal and Norse mythology, but since 2016 it’s become a four-piece live band as well. A love for Norse mythology and Viking music isn’t so rare in metal, but in combination with the slower arts it’s a pretty unique phenomenon. Eventide baths you in a warm mixture of psychedelic doom, atmospheric black metal, and beautiful lead melodies for a very soothing, almost ethereal experience. You can easily hear the experience of this band when it comes to songwriting. Each track ever so cohesive, gently flows from one idea into the next. The album ebbs and flows so smoothly its 45 minute runtime will feel like 30. But at the same time, it’s fulfilling enough to feel like an hour’s worth of music. Very impressive in that regard.
Part of what makes this album work so well is how it’s mixed. There’s none of the lofi black metal aesthetic. Eventide has a very full and weighty mix. The guitars in this record wash over you with how warm and full they sound. They have lovely tones, taking both from atmo-black artists like Agalloch as they take from a stoner doom band like Elder. The “distant” shrieking style of vocals they employ also have that washing effect of the guitars, but in a more tortured fashion (as per usual with shrieks). They complement each other really well. The vocals give a more raw edge, but they’re distant enough not to overshadow the guitars, which are by all means the driving force of the music. Otherwise the drums sound serviceable, and a trained ear will be able to pick out the bass as well, though I personally would have liked it a little more up front. The rhythm section doesn’t do anything particularly noteworthy as far as I could tell, but they really don’t need to either with this type of music.
In terms of songs, they’re all solid, but I’ll highlight a couple. There’s a very clear Agalloch influence in all of them with similar lead melodies, ghastly vocals, and dreamlike songwriting. “Harvest” in particular draws in the Agalloch comparisons the closest as the only mixed vocals track with its folky intro, and similarly crooning, melancholy-driven clean vocals. It’s the softest tune on the album, but it’s also the most touching one as the melodies are the most poignant and a light piano addition hammers in the melancholy even further. “January” has a nice drop-off in the middle, which in almost post-black fashion leads back into the washy black metal, and “Bathe the Stone in Blood” really leans in on the psych doom aspect of their sound with weighty riffs and a lovely psychedelic guitar solo in the middle. The others are also mostly strong, albeit the unceremonious ending of album closer “Servitude” did leave a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.
This is the type of album you put on when you want to sit back and relax with some nice music, but still let your thoughts roam freely as you contemplate life and the cosmos. It’s great for walks through nature or studying as well. Eventide is an easy-listening album that has enough emotional depth to facilitate closer listens, but also gentle enough to let it roam in the background. Sadly I couldn’t find the lyrics anywhere online, but I assume those are full of Norse mythology references. I think for the next album I would like some more clean vocals thrown in for variation, and maybe a little more of those folk elements we saw in “Harvest”, but otherwise this is excellent stuff. In the meantime though, I’ll be sure to look into their past discography, that’s for sure.
Recommended tracks: January, Bathe the Stone in Blood, Harvest
Recommended for fans of: Agalloch, Skyforest, Elder
Final verdict: 7.5/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Label: Eisenwald – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook
The Flight of Sleipnir is:
– David Csicsely (drums, vocals)
– Clayton Cushman (guitars, bass)
– Dave Borrusch (bass)
– Justin Siegler (guitars)
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