Windir – Arntor (1999)
Genre: Folkloric Black Metal
Intro:
Windir were a folkloric metal band coming from Sogndal, Norway. The band was influenced heavily by Norweigan folk music. The band is no longer functional as the lead vocalist and musician Valfur passed in 2004.
The band consists of:
• Valfar - vocals, accordion, and additional instruments
• Hvàll (Jarle Kvåle) - bass guitar
• Steingrim (Jørn Holen) - drums
• Sture Dingsøyr - rhythm guitar
• Strom (Stian Bakketeig) - lead guitar
• Righ (Gaute Refsnes) - keyboards
"Arntor" is the band's second full-length album.
Review:
The album begins with a beautiful instrumental intro with the main man Valfar playing the acordian before falling into the trap and the blast of the speed and power to come. The transitions between outright power and domination to the more relaxed and perfect musicianship is what really draws me into the album during the first couple of songs. The folk element to the album is of more appeal as I think it lets them show off their class and showcases the music so well by the flow of it.
The climax to the album would be the epic 10 minute long trip down awesomeness road, “Saknet.” As I said previous the flow between all-out war and shorter periods of a slower, less-intense musicianship is what really stands out. Words cannot actually do this album justice, you have to just pick it up and listen to it yourself.
For someone who does not particularly enjoy black metal I really enjoyed this album for start to end and it will definitely get many more plays.
9.5/10
Windir – Arntor, Ein Warrior