Year : 2017
Style : Melodic Folk Power Metal
Country : Canada
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 105 mb
Bio:
Everything started on a particularly not very eventful night back in 2006. Warraxe and Benfok started to create what would eventually be known as "Far Away". After the first draft of a song that seems to kick some ass, the 2 men decided it was time to push the project further so they started their quest to find other musicians to complete the band. That quest was long and hard because these musicians not only needed to be serious and talented, they also needed to be compatible with the inferior brains of Warraxe and Benfok. Freydrick was the first one to join the troops....armed with his blonde beard" Then came the protector of thy unholy keyboard, Dark Dreamer, whose evil was just so... evil. Other musicians joined the band as well but due to conflicting schedule, they went on some other path. The horde was almost complete. Warraxe chose the path of the guitar player/singer and his brother-in-law chose the keyboard but a drummer was still missing.Then from the frozen guts of Hiverna, a troll named Bardunor rose and joined the horde. Unfortunately this troll had to go back to his cave but his quest with the braves folks from Nordheim is not completed... some beer barrels still needs to be drank....but that's another tale. Then a very old friend came out of the shadows and claimed: " I can play drums...I can play fuc**ng fast!". So Phil Poul joined and replace Bardunnor. He contributed to the demo and to the first album " Lost In The North". Some years passed but in 2011, Phil Poul departed from the band, opening the door for a Red Bearded Viking, the seducing Lucas Biron (Kälter) who joined the barbarian brotherhood. They then loaded the longship and started the quest for their next barrel of potion called "Refill". Soon after the release of the second album, Thom, the brother-in-law of Warraxe had to leave in order to fight the stone cold armies of the east. But during the summer of 2014, they heard a far away howl...followed by some notes from a piano...These notes came from a young wolf called the Loup-Gab of America. Since then, the band is complete. Nordheim is ready to sail through many perilous travels aboard their troll longship!
Album:
Look, I know my listening tastes this year have gravitated towards the heathen folk releases this year big time. Sure, some heavier stuff has been on my listening rotation too. Where is the out of control, dark and dirty, swampy folk metal in 2017? Only a few here or there like Bergsvriden and Drunken Fury jump out at me.Well, I might just be crowning the king of the bogs this year with the latest from Canada’s Nordheim. Has it really been 4 years since “Refill” came out? Hard to believe. Set to be released on November 24th, “RapThor” has 8 face smashing tracks in its 40 minutes of playing time. Let your melo-death juices flow as you get pulverized by track after relentless track, fueled by booze and chicks. Think of “Reign In Blood” era-Slayer meets Trollfest and Æther Realm with some Svartby and throw that into a boiling pot and you may be cooking what Nordheim is serving up. The last album that comes to mind as the most direct comparison was the last Varg album (“The End Of All Lies”) where every track is breakneck and punishing. There is no delaying the inevitable as album opener “Troll Riding A Raptor” sets the tone for the semi-serious and definitely hyper remaining tracks. Double bass charged tracks from beginning to end with deathy, screechy vocals and shredding riffs. There is no “OFF” button here…..it is full ON all the time. Besides the obvious speed here, if you peel back the layers you will hear some nice augmenting keys and some killer backing choral vocals. Just want a two-minute concussion? Go right to “I Wish You Were Beer” with it’s nod to an Irish style track with a bit of a swing to it. Serious stuff is on here too including epic album closer at almost 10 minutes with “Dragonthorn”. This album is hitting at the right time and has been a constant destroyer to my speakers since I received it. I think this could be sneaking into many a top album lists with only a few weeks left in 2017. The mix and production are thrashy and raw in a good way, abrasive yet clear guitar, pounding drums and bass with enough attention given to vocals both primary and backing.If only other bands spent the time to make it sound this good, the world would be a better place. A triumphant return for Nordheim and an end of the year stocking stuffer for album of the year candidate if I ever saw one… season’s greetings
Line Up:
Waraxe - Vocals, Guitars - See also: ex-Valknacht
Benfok - Bass, Vocals (backing) - See also: ex-Valknacht
Fred - Guitars (lead)
Lucas Biron - Drums (2011-present) - See also: Eclipse Prophecy, Solinaris, ex-Kälter, ex-Endless Horizon (live)
Tracklist:
01. Troll Riding a Raptor
02. Boobs and Bacon
03. Scroll of Lightning Bolt
04. Black Witch Rises
05. I Wish You Were Beer
06. Strength Became the Storm
07. Blood's Shade
08. Dragonthorn
Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/
