Finntroll – Nifelvind

Finntroll is back with the follow-up to 2007’s “Ur Jordens Djup”. Whereas that album saw them going back to their earlier days with a more brutal sound, this time around they are once again back to mixing their black metal with a shitload of folk elements. This includes a lot of banjo, violin and keyboards. The keyboards help in giving the band more of a cinematic feel, reminding me more than once of Lord Of The Rings for some reason. Even though these guys are probably so evil they’d rather anally rape the elves and have a hobbit or two for breakfast.

Anyway, if it’s pure metal you’re looking for, look elsewhere. These guys can rage pretty hard though as can be heard in songs like “I Trädens Sang”. But if you are the toughest treehugger on the block and you’re looking to get your groove on, you’ll be best served with a healthy dose of Finntroll’s humppa metal (“Fornfamna”, “Under Bergets Rot”).

I still think Finntroll’s music is wrong on so many different levels that I don’t even know where to start. Yet even I have to admit they are doing a damn good job in incorporating all these different sounds in a style as stagnant as black metal. No wonder these guys are at the top of the pagan metal scene!
Score: 8 out of 10
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