Ensiferum
From Afar

By now, the formula is extremely tried and tested. As they say, using a perhaps not entirely appropriate euphemism, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" — rather, if we really want to dot the "i"s, we might equip it with a few extra hundred horses, "remap" the control unit, and off we go. But the heart, the pure and sincere pulse, should never be changed, also because, when it comes to Ensiferum, it pounds rather than beats, and it does so in the way that is most congenial to the band and has now become their trademark: ever-unyielding snare, chases of guitars, ruthless "harsh" vocals, and, every now and then, slowdowns and choruses of extreme epicness.

There. That's it. Already at this point, if you've had enough, you can close the page and tend to other things. Or.
Or you can stay and see how it ends, because there are novelties in this new album: juicy ones that I’m sure will delight Ensiferum fans.
We mentioned the ingredients before, and they are well-known to everyone. What's contrarian in the Ensiferum world, however, is their extreme originality and versatility in reinventing themselves each time, although never straying from their field, which, in itself, develops on heterogeneous and hard-to-classify bases. And yet, one might argue that for several years now, even if their proposition was original, this band has been recycling the same formulas, and I respond with - yes, it's true, but no one knows how to do it with their elegance, with their fascinating thundering epic, as they do. If we also consider that from the Viking horn from which Ensiferum draw inspiration there always come inexhaustible offerings, then you can get comfortable: everything in here could easily excite you to the point that you want, in the end, to grow a beard, unsheathe a sword, and run through your garden in search of enemies to celebrate (provided, of course, the authorities haven’t locked you up first).

This, in the end, is what this band is about. Start with the usual epic intro "By the Dividing Steam", immediately accelerate with "From Afar", and finally, already sweating, reach the peak of the album, represented by the pair "Twilight Tavern" and "Heathen Throne": the manifesto, if anyone were to ask you, of the "barbaric" yet precious way of playing that defines Ensiferum. The former, with a central part that seems to emerge from the pages of Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings", with a melodically inspired section, sweet, melancholic yet not trivial, which flows into an untouchable and distant universe, lost in time yet not misty, tinged with earth and frost colors, not darkness. The latter, instead, unfolds in acrobatic runnings dictated by an epic chorus that never bores, then slows down and accelerates again, alternating and always giving a different aspect to the composition which, eventually, concludes the spectacle, found in the second part "The Longest Journey (Heathen Throne Part II)", definitively marking that the "longest journey" is indeed over, and has worn itself out following sublime atmospheric samples that every now and then, it’s nice to remember and bring to mind.

In the meantime, there’s also still time for fierce surges, for very "power" gallops, which are likewise an inseparable aspect among the band's characteristics. And so passes "Elusive Reaches", and likewise "Stone Cold Metal", particularly unique in pairing tavern-like choruses, owing much to Finntroll, with a well-attended keyboard section, crafted around the clean and crystalline hum of guitars that give vigor and nerve to the bases of this "carefree" track. Beware, though: we are talking about Ensiferum, a band often accused of taking itself "too seriously", so perhaps the adjective should be approached with caution. Or perhaps not.
Because this at hand is not just any song, it's a track split in half, with in the middle "THE" surprise that, I am sure, will leave even the most seasoned and accustomed connoisseur of "contaminations" out there open-mouthed. Try it to believe it. Maybe you'll tell me later. At first, it made me laugh, then I decided to quash its existence for the aforementioned reasons, but eventually, I am convinced that this too is the corollary of these "peers" of mine.

So, apart from the gem I've just mentioned, expect nothing other than pure Ensiferum sound at 100%, even if their name already speaks for itself, so it's not possible to categorize them and give them a mediocre rating, unless there are unpleasant surprises, which, we hope, will never come.
Surely, this won't be the album of the year, and in the folk realm, there will certainly be those who have done better, but what do you want, class is not water, and "From Afar" demonstrates it wholly.