Review by Felix on June 22, 2019.

You know the story of the two sides of the coin, don't you? Black metal from Québec is one of these coins. Some say that all bands have the same sound and the same approach, but others are of the opinion that these bands have created a new style under the banner of "métal noir québécois". Well, maybe it's no new style, but an unmistakable identity. Délétère play exactly the style that everybody has in mind when it comes to the francophone Canadian metropolis. Sound cascades like waterfalls take possession of the listener and draw her or him into a nightmarish scenario. Almost overlong song patterns and guitar lines which are sometimes repetitive but always effective set the right frame for a trip to the end of time and back.

Délétère are not lazy and therefore they deliver three new songs, even though their last album is just eleven months old. That's a remarkably short period, but who wants to stop creative people as long as they write fanatic black metal tunes? Me not. Speaking of creativity, the promo sheet wants to make us believe that "Délétère distills its very own essence of powerful, raw, and melodic black metal", but to mention a very own essence is ridiculous. As mentioned above, the opposite is true. The formation does not hurt the guidelines of the sub-genre and I enjoy it the way it is. The three tracks cover all facets of MNQ movement and the profound, alternating anthemic or fast guitar lines prevent any form of boredom. Of course, the bar has been set very high by De Horae Leprae, but the EP is willing and - nearly - able to challenge this mighty album. Sacral keyboards add an atmospheric touch and lend the opener an eldritch touch. However, the band mostly prefers fast sequences, in short, the here presented songs exactly follow the route that the band's previous material has already taken. Fans of the former outputs can buy this work blindly.

Maybe the last ounce of currishness is missing and the religious yet ill-fated character of De Horae Leprae does not reappear in full bloom. Nevertheless, all songs convince and the threatening guitars at the beginning and the end of "Milites Pestilentiae III – Babylonia Magnissima" create some of the best moments of the EP. However, Theovorator: Babelis Testamentum is immune against feeble parts and its playtime of roughly 20 minutes is not too long, to say the least. The appropriate, dense sound completes the picture. Forteresse beware, because Délétère have the potential to pen a full-length which could oust "Thémes pour la rébellion" from the throne. Either way, Québec can be proud of triggering the most exciting wave in terms of present extreme metal. And that's exactly the reason why I forget the other side of the coin right now.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10

Review by Felix on June 22, 2019.

You know the story of the two sides of the coin, don't you? Black metal from Québec is one of these coins. Some say that all bands have the same sound and the same approach, but others are of the opinion that these bands have created a new style under the banner of "métal noir québécois". Well, maybe it's no new style, but an unmistakable identity. Délétère play exactly the style that everybody has in mind when it comes to the francophone Canadian metropolis. Sound cascades like waterfalls take possession of the listener and draw her or him into a nightmarish scenario. Almost overlong song patterns and guitar lines which are sometimes repetitive but always effective set the right frame for a trip to the end of time and back.

Délétère are not lazy and therefore they deliver three new songs, even though their last album is just eleven months old. That's a remarkably short period, but who wants to stop creative people as long as they write fanatic black metal tunes? Me not. Speaking of creativity, the promo sheet wants to make us believe that "Délétère distills its very own essence of powerful, raw, and melodic black metal", but to mention a very own essence is ridiculous. As mentioned above, the opposite is true. The formation does not hurt the guidelines of the sub-genre and I enjoy it the way it is. The three tracks cover all facets of MNQ movement and the profound, alternating anthemic or fast guitar lines prevent any form of boredom. Of course, the bar has been set very high by De Horae Leprae, but the EP is willing and - nearly - able to challenge this mighty album. Sacral keyboards add an atmospheric touch and lend the opener an eldritch touch. However, the band mostly prefers fast sequences, in short, the here presented songs exactly follow the route that the band's previous material has already taken. Fans of the former outputs can buy this work blindly.

Maybe the last ounce of currishness is missing and the religious yet ill-fated character of De Horae Leprae does not reappear in full bloom. Nevertheless, all songs convince and the threatening guitars at the beginning and the end of "Milites Pestilentiae III – Babylonia Magnissima" create some of the best moments of the EP. However, Theovorator: Babelis Testamentum is immune against feeble parts and its playtime of roughly 20 minutes is not too long, to say the least. The appropriate, dense sound completes the picture. Forteresse beware, because Délétère have the potential to pen a full-length which could oust "Thémes pour la rébellion" from the throne. Either way, Québec can be proud of triggering the most exciting wave in terms of present extreme metal. And that's exactly the reason why I forget the other side of the coin right now.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10

Review by Emma on December 14, 2009.

Arkona’s latest release has pushed the concept of ‘epic’ to an entirely new level. The flood that is "Goi, Rode, Goi!" sweeps away any competitors vying for the title of ‘most epic folk metal album’. Arkona’s music has always had a legendary quality, and with "Goi, Rode, Goi!" it has reached a crescendo.

The highlight of the album was the vocals. You could say that for most of Arkona’s music, but the unique vocals are what really made me return to "Goi, Rode, Goi!" multiple times. Masha ‘Scream’ has managed to braze Death Metal growls and swelling Slavic-folk style vocal arrangements. One of the most noticeable differences between Arkona’s previous albums and their latest is the use of the folk vocal style. Masha voice unleashes a rich and deep calculated wailing that listeners have only received small glimmers of in past works. All guards are let down and the folk singing style takes over for a majority of the album. Guest male vocals also manage to make it into ‘Na Moey Zemle’ and wind up making it one of the most memorable tracks on the album as they contrast and communicate with Masha’s voice. ‘Pritchka’ offers a bit of respite from the drama of the other tracks; listeners hear Masha speaking, a momentary showcase of the beauty of the Russian language.

Arkona uses a particularly wide variety of instrumentation, including a violin on a number of occasions. A jaw harp, ocarina, whistles, tulnic, domrin, and mandolin are just some of the instruments featured. Members from other known Folk Metal bands contributed vocally and instrumentally. Not just one or two bands, you’d think the whole eastern European scene contributed. Members of Skyforger, Heidevolk, Månegarm, Ashaena, Menhir, Obtest, Svarga, Kalevala, Tverd and Rarog all contributed to "Goi, Rode, Goi!" All of these instruments provided greatly varied variety and texture that could never be achieved with keyboards. Combining musical forces worked greatly for creating a mythic feeling of ‘time before time,’ the trouble taken to find all real instruments paid off.

Before I end this review, I’d like to touch on the ‘epic-osity’ of this album. Because I don’t mean epic like ‘Never-Ending-Story-epic’ no. "Goi, Rode, Goi!" is full on "Return-Of-The-Fucking-King-Extended-Edition-Epic." Whew. "Return…" extended is 250 minutes. It takes a particularly devoted fan to want to sit down and watch the entire 250 minutes of "Return..." in one sitting. Such is the situation with Arkona’s "Goi, Rode, Goi!"’ which is 120 min. in length.
I write this because what keeps Arkona’s latest from being their magnum opus to date is the album’s length. Several tracks could have been cut out entirely as they did little for the album overall. Others were just a case of too many good ideas packed in too short a time. Further editing would have made a really concrete album. However, some may disagree and argue that it is simply the nature of epic music to be particularly lengthy. Either way, check "Goi, Rode, Goi!" out.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 10
Atmosphere: 10
Production: 10
Originality: 9.5
Overall: 9

Rating: 9.7 out of 10