Band : Adorned Brood
Album title : Hammerfeste
Label : Black Bards Records
Distributor : Sonic Rendezvous
Release date : 01/10/2010
Release : CD

Adorned Brood are taking their first steps out of the German pagan metal scene to become one of Germany’s leading pagan metal bands. Well, that’s their great purpose in life. They hope to succeed in doing so with their brand new album, which is entitled Hammerfeste. And a real hammer party it is. Let’s discuss some of the songs.
The album immediately starts with the title track, setting the context: pagan metal as fantastic as you could ever imagine it to be. We’re wonderfully welcomed into a land of wonders, of battle and most of all, a land of fantasies. This instrumental intro displays all pagan instruments. The orchestra adds even more strength to it.
In Pagan Knights, fury is officially unleashed upon the world. It’s a shame the vocals sound a bit messy, because the riffs are wonderfully mastered. The incredibly catchy chorus is one of the best reason to listen to this song.
In Battle starts off in an easy way, with the wonderful sound of a flute. But don’t be mislead, for this is only the introduction to a vast war. The sound of the flute remains present in the entire song, which gives this song the small extra it definitely needs.
All in all, the rest of the songs are very well worked on, though the entire album lacks variation. In addition it’s full of clichés, which makes it a bit annoying not to find any differentiation.
The instruments and melodies are catchy, that’s for certain, but it’s all a bit over the top.
Hammerfeste will be much appreciated by a lot of pagan metal fans, but whether or not Adorned Brood will make it out of the underground with this album is only the question.

68/100

Tim Tronckoe.