Customer Reviews

The Winter Wake

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Wow that is crazy, the last 2 Elvenking albums (Heathenreel and Wyrd) got 5 stars each, but why only 3 for this! Out of fairness, I had to put a 5 star review in here, cause two haters should not bring down this album's whole rating!

And now, on to the review. For those not familiar with Elvenking: this band is NOT like Finntroll. I love Finntroll, but I love a lot of other metal too. If you only like folk metal that has a lot of death and/or black mixed in, you will NOT like this. Don't buy it. However, if you like lighter folk metal (e.g. Korpiklaani, Skyclad, Otyg, later Cruachan, and the like) and *especially* if you also like power metal, then you will LOVE this. If you hate power metal, then don't buy it, because there's a fair amount of power influence in this band. If you don't mind power metal, give it a try. This is not very harsh stuff; but it is beautiful and absolutely excellent musicianship.

For those who are already familiar with their earlier albums Heathenreel and/or Wyrd, if you enjoy those albums, then you will like this one! It continues along the same vein, no significant musical changes to my ears.

Other points: the extra making of video is not that great, but it doesn't matter, the music itself is what you want to get this disc for. Also, whoever wrote the tracklisting made some mistakes. Most notably, track 12 is not "Penny's Rebel" but "Penny Dreadful", which is a quite good cover of the Skyclad song of the same name.

Ok, I've been a fan of Elvenking for some time now. I love the Heathenreal album and Wyrd is great too. I would give both of those albums easily just under five stars each. I drop by Amazon after getting Winter's Wake to see what everyone else was saying about it and couldn't believe my eyes. Three stars? That's it? Something must have gone wrong here! First of all, the album is beyond excellent. Elvenking as always are nothing short of brilliant. Some of the earlier reviews on this album gave it a single star, I'm gonna have to cry foul. Anyone who would give this CD just a single star must have some sort of an agenda or something. The album is great, the musicianship is top notch. I couldn't imagine those earlier reviewers being big fans of the genre. I think it is more likely they were let down by their misguided expectations. Let's be honest here, yes this is folk oriented metal, it's heavy at times, light at others, and very power metal influenced. If you're expecting a lot of death flavor you won't find it here. What you will find is a great power metal band, with strong folk elements, and a little shamanic spirituality at times. Elvenking for the most part, has an uplifting sound and alot of toe tapping beats. Bottomline, if your a fan of bands like Blind Guardian, Rhapsody, Angra, Korpiklaani, or Pagans Mind, this band might just be for you. If you liked any of Elvenkings previous album, I don't think you will be let down here either. It's quite rare to find an album that actually deserves one star, just as it is rare to find an album wich is worth five. This album is at least 4.5 stars, I would normally round down, but because of the earlier seemingly biased reviews I felt compelled to give Elvenking a bit of extra credit. Anyway, check it out for yourself and enjoy!

"The Winter Wake" (2006) is the third album from Italian folk/power metal band Elvenking. Elvenking, as usual, does a good job with the folk elements, including flutes, strings and acoustic guitars, and it makes the music interesting. There's a good variety of songs.

Elvenking's one weakness is their lead singer, who does fine on the occasions he goes for death-style vocals, but otherwise has a raspy, pretty un-melodic voice that one might expect on a punk or alternative rock album.

Overall this is a very solid power metal album with a strong folk element.

I saw the other reviews and there seems to be a love hate thing going with these guys. I must say that I actually like them despite one problem that has been bugging me since the first listen.

The vocals are not quite up to par. First off, the singer has a great voice and the harmonies are really great. However, the vocals seem to be buried in the mix, relegated to articulated vocal noises. Now I will be the first one to tell you I don't listen to the words or really care much what they are singing about. But with power metal vocals, you would expect to at least understand most of what the guy is singing. This is not the case. His rapid fire delivery of complex lyrics is unintelligible for the most part. I was sitting in line at the gas station and decided to try and follow one of the songs with the lyrics in the booklet while I was waiting. Well, besides the rapid fire delivery, the singer only marginally follows the lyrics!

I do have some favorites off the album and once I got over the vocal problem, I realized that I actually like this album quite well. If they fixed the vocals, I think this album would be an outstanding example of Pagan/folk power metal. I do not mean to fire the singer. Just push the vocals a little more up front in the mix and slow down the lyric delivery! Elvenking, you got something special here. A few minor changes will step you up to a whole new level.

Recommended.

This album really is the best folk metal album I've ever heard, and I would highly reccomend it to anyone into bands such as Finntroll or Korpiklanni, but I'm not going to get into many details. I'm mainly just writing this review to make the album's rating go up. Mr. Jonathan Dedward "Dedward" doesnt know what he's talking about and shouldn't have written a review if he's not very experienced in folk metal.

First of all... I have to say what an incredible blend of folk, metal, and talent. A very powerful, and uplifting style. This band really got me intrigued for the whole folk metal style. I urge anyone interested into this band to please check out some of their samples, these guys have talent.

I don't understand the "nay sayers" about this album. Their reasoning seems unclear. They seems biased at worse... blurred at best. (Or maybe they're comparing it to a style they enjoy? Regardless, I find this album quite charming!)

It contains an assorted amount of songs ranging from face-paced (power) metal, to slow and soft relaxing tones. (Morning Dew/Disillusion's Reel/etc.) I love the song they've dedicated to the "Trow's kind" and their motivating song "Rouse your dreams!" Lol very fast paced and recharging. It's an awesome album!

I remember getting into Elvenking when I first discovered pagan metal... I was more about Eluveitie, Finntroll, Equilibrium and but for some reason... I'd always return to Elvenking songs... why? Perhaps because their music is so catchy. I think Damnagoras' has the most unique voice... I'm glad I discovered this band! It's a unique addition to my collection. <3

This CD takes a few listens...but then you can't put it away. I highly recommend this. Each song packs a punch and has a great groove that makes your head bang involuntarily. There is a great mix of instruments that creates a layered feel where each time you listen to it you hear something a little new.

Words can not describe how amazing this album sounds and the feelings it invokes in the listner. Elvenking is a truly unique band with a unique mix of light folk and speed metal. Please give them a try, then check out their other albums. I'd ignore the other reviewer, they obviously don't understand European metal.

okay for the guy , who wrote the other review, you are DEAD WRONG, what the hell kind of music do you like?, if you are a metal fan this album is AMAZING, such a unique band, and this album is great
awesome use of acoustic guitars, flutes, violins
heavy riffs, awesome production, leads - solos
and one of the most unique talented vocalist, if you are a fan of power metal or just good music in general, make sure to pick this one up! 10/10 every song rules!
NEVERWINTER NIGHTS!!!