Album reviews: HEXVESSEL – No Holier Temple

Svart Records – Out Now.

A year or so ago I remember coming across a review from a fellow journalist which was pretty complementary of “Dawnbearer”, the debut release by the Finnish Folk Metal outfit Hexvessel and even though I was initially quite intrigued to find out for myself what these guys were all about, I end up missing out on that particular album.

Forward a year, the name Hexvessel has come up again, this time in an e-mail promoting the release of the band’s second studio album “No Holier Duty” and a sense of duty combined with instant access to the band’s latest material led me to write the review you are now reading.

Most young Finnish bands see Folk Metal as a vehicle for gloomy and atmospheric melodies/themes as those performed by Amorphis. Either that, or it’s up-tempo and…happy, Korpiklaani-style. Luckily, for me, Hexvessel’s musical journey has more things in common with the former, being similarly influenced by the early 70s in both sound and style, but they often steer away from the classical path by indulging in colourful psychedelia and heavy riffs which look towards bands like Pentagram and Witchcraft for inspiration. Sound good? You bet!

The first half of the album is quite moody and musically introvert, as demonstrated by slow acoustic pieces like “Heaven And Earth” and the piano led “Wilderness Is” and slow-paced vocally led themes reminiscent of latter-day Opeth, such as in “Woods To Conjure”. The scent of the Mediterranean is evoked through the accordion and mandolin tunes of “A Letter In Birch Bark” and by the time the short moody narrative of “Elegy To Goyahkla” is performed you will probably be thinking you have heard all there is to hear from this album. This is not the case, however.

Combining distorted riffs with clever flute melodies, “His Portal Tomb” is an ode to Pink Floyd and Witchcraft and paves the way towards heavier formulae. “Sacred Marriage” is one of the stand out tracks of the album, with 70s Manzarek-style (The Doors) keys creating in the process a wonderful trance-like mood for the listener.

Meanwhile, the equally varied and melodically impressive “Unseen Sun” portrays the members of the band as technically intelligent musicians – further proof of which can be found in a killer cover of “Your Head Is Reeling”, originally performed by the 70s Psychedelic rockers Ultimate Spinach.

Even if Folk Rock or Metal are genres that you do not normally associate yourself with, I would still suggest you check out “No Holier Temple”. The cleverness with which this band mixes its various musical influences, together with their ability to create a good tune and sensational moody and atmospheric passages might just interest you.

I, for one, am pretty pleased to see young bands like Hexvessel breaking the mould by offering something different from their currently more commercially successful countrymen, especially when the music created is as impressive as what’s on offer here. A splendid album.

John Stefanis

Rating: ****1/2 (4.5/5.0)

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