The wait has finally come to an end and now the world get's to hear the highly anticipated excellent new Ren Marabou & The Beserkers album Tales Of Rune, safe to say this is a band that produces an absolutely brilliant portrayal of Norse Mythology,Viking Lore and Paganism all the while having a lot of fun doing it which comes across extremely clear while listening to their music.
The album opens up with the track Fenrir "The One who Dwells in The Marshes"."The Chain Breaker" a track full of passion,heavy riffing with a blend of aggressive and clean vocals a great way to set the tone for what's to come. Dodssang(Death Song) get's the adrenaline flowing with it's fast pace remeiniscent of Motorhead,midway through the pace is slowed a slight bit with added groove. We're treated to a beautifully crafted song with feeling in the form of the brilliant Kinsmen Die the track is full of melancholy and a sense of lost Viking Brethren,the lead guitar in this song is a thing of beauty adding to the overall atmosphere running throughout the song. Three of Norns starts off with a slow pace before gradually building up to Hefty Riffage and plenty of Groove then into some fantastic Lead Guitar work,this is one of my favourite trcks on the album and continues to push the atmospheric boundaries of the album to another level. Getting to the half way point on the album we're drawn into the enchanted realms of the forest with the track Huldra a song about the seductive forest creature which has plenty of killer mid paced riffs and an alluring atmosphere which captivates and traps you in it's grasp.
Onto the seventh track on the album and the absolutely sublime Sigurd The Dragon Slayer this track is all about the riffs and there's plenty of quality riffs to grab the listeners attention,the atmosphere on this song makes you feel like you're going into a monumental battle only to be betrayed and murdered after the arduous and dangerous tasks. Brand Of Sacrifice is a ripping track full passion and aggression,the presence of traditional instrumentation gives the song a really full of life atmosphere and draws the listener further into the stories within the album.
Let's Drink Mead has a very Anthemic feeling to it and sounds like Ren Marabou and The Beserkers had an awful lot of fun in the writing process of this song, the concept behing this song is about Vikings killing each other in Valhalla and then going to The Great hall and drinking Mead together, overall a fantastic song. The mood get's a little bit melancholic with Odin's Sons and Daughters the track opens up with a riff not too dissimiliar to Gary Moore or Thin Lizzy ,this is another song that builds up the pace and mood switching between a melancholic atmosphere with exceptional lead guitar work to Aggressive and Passionate Vocal delivery. Bragi(God Of Music) at intervals has a somewhat hypnotic atmosphere with the layered vocals and the presence of a Mandolin giving a nice jovial feeling. The final track on the album Finngaill(Fair Foreigners) is a fitting way to end this brilliant release with it's homage at the intro(of the song) to the traditional Irish song Oro, Se Do Bheata 'Baile, a fun song about travelling with the Viking Hordes and drinking mead.
This is the bands 4th album and is by far their best to date,they continue to push the boundaries of their brand of Viking Metal/Norse Pagan Rock with brilliant musicianship, atmosphere, passion and a will to improve with each release, Ren Marabou & The Beserkers are a band on the rise and long may it continue, Tales Of Rune is an album full of Passion,Fun,Atmosphere and all the nuances to broaden their fanbase.
