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░ ██ ██ Artist: Celtefog ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Sounds of the Olden Days █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2016 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-10-14 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Black Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Celtic Fog Productions ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ A solo project formed by Empathy guitarist Archon, █
█ Celtefog was started in 2012 as a pagan black █
█ metal act. Archon performs all instruments on █
█ Celtefog, with the help of the occasional guest █
█ musician. The project released a pair of demos in █
█ 2013 and then the debut album, Deliverance, in █
█ 2014, which was received favorably in certain █
█ circles. Celtefog returned in 2016 with a █
█ sophomore album, Sounds of the Olden Days, which █
█ continues in the same vein as the debut. █
█ Those familiar with CeltefogÆs previous work █
█ should find no surprises. Indeed, the closing █
█ track, ôNyktaö was previously released on the 2014 █
█ split with Hocus, Nyktos Gensis and ôThree Nights █
█ in the Mediterranean Seaö was previously released █
█ as a single. That being said, Sounds of the Olden █
█ Days comes across as anything but hackneyed, as █
█ the entire album flows naturally over its near █
█ fifty-minute run time. Sweeping, somewhat █
█ theatrical black metal, often calling to mind the █
█ likes of recent Rotting Christ or Macabre Omen, █
█ builds the base of CeltefogÆs sound. Pummeling █
█ percussion and melodic yet fierce riffing often █
█ give way to moments of Mediterranean folk or the █
█ sound of crashing waves and seagulls, yet the folk █
█ and samples refrain from falling into campiness. █
█ Though the bandÆs sound is truly rooted in that █
█ old Greek style, traces of the Norwegian pagan █
█ black metal scene are constantly popping up, like █
█ the driving, yet airy riffing of ôThree Nights in █
█ the Mediterranean Seaö which calls to mind the █
█ likes of Windir and Kampfar. The instruments are █
█ are performed quite well, yet the sweeping, █
█ melodic guitar riffing throughout certainly steals █
█ the show. The rather warm production allows the █
█ guitars and folk instruments to shine through, █
█ while still sounding quite heavy in scope. █
█ Celtefog may not be a household name when it comes █
█ to pagan or Hellenic black metal, but if Archon █
█ continues with this quality, it wonÆt take long █
█ before Celtefog is mentioned in the same breath as █
█ some of the bands previously mentioned. With █
█ sweeping black metal that utilizes loads of folk █
█ instrumentation and melodic passages, Sounds of █
█ the Olden Days manages to be one of those great █
█ albums that slipped under my radar from the year █
█ before. Had I looked into this one sooner, it █
█ certainly would have made itÆs way onto my year █
█ end list. Definitely a project to keep an ear out █
█ for. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. My Last Sight to the Known Universe 9:07 ░
░ 2. Tombs of Memories 6:28 ░
░ 3. Call of the Ancestors 8:37 ░
░ 4. Three Nights in the Mediterranean Sea 7:01 ░
░ 5. Into the Mist (Instrumental) 6:51 ░
░ 6. Nykta 10:32 ░
░ 48:36 ░
░ ▒ ▒
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