AN NCS PREMIERE (AND REVIEW): EVEALE – ENTER THE WOODLAND REALM

(Andy Synn is here to guide you on a journey… into the woodland realm)

There are lots of different factors one can use to analyse, criticise, and appraise a band… ambition, execution, innovation, intention.

But the one that’s more important than any of them – in my opinion, at least – is passion.

And make no mistake, Eveale is very much a passion-project for its members (whose work you may have heard in bands like Am I In Trouble? and Ashenheart) whose goal on Enter the Woodland Realm – which releases on Friday but we’re premiering exclusively here today – is to channel their love of Black Metal, in all its forms, into nine rich, evocative songs that pay tribute both to the history of the genre and to the glory of nature.

Now, obviously, the band aren’t attempting to reinvent the wheel or rewrite the rulebook here – though the occasional inclusion of such esoteric (for Black Metal, at least) instruments as bongos and the Tibetan Singing Bowl certainly goes well beyond “standard operating procedure” – but they’re also not beholden to following a single, predetermined path on their arboreal audio journey.

From the lush acoustics of the aptly-named “The Beginning” and the seething, Borknagar-ian surge of “Lament of the Dryads” to the soaring melodic melancholy of “The Final Quest” (which features some truly creative bass/guitar interplay, as well as some absolutely captivating clean vocals reminiscent of Amiensus at their best) and the absolutely outstanding, climactic title-track (whose shining lead guitar work and shivering tremolo patterns are practically worth the entire price of the album) the duo pour every ounce of their passion and conviction into the music, with impressively epic results.

This larger journey is also reflected in the microcosm too, with the Emperor-esque intensity of “The Enemy” broken up by an unexpectedly poignant (and proggy) passage of calm, crooning introspection, while the stomping heaviness of early highlight “Carniflora” contrasts nicely with the gloomy Post-Black grandeur of “The Ritual”, with the only real mis-step along the way being the slightly too pretty, almost Power Metal-ish overtones of “Our Flame” (though it’s definitely only a minor stumble in the grand scheme of things, and should in no way spoil your enjoyment of the vibrant sonic vistas the band have painted here).

Of course, ultimately, the above is only a sort of general guide… the map is not the territory, after all… and your experience, following the band as they in turn follow in the footsteps of those who went before them, will surely be your own.

Which means, without further ado, it’s time for you to give Enter the Woodland Realm a listen for yourselves.

Enter the Woodland Realm will be released on May 1st by Hypaethral Records on LP, CD, and digital, and by Fiadh Productions on cassette.

PRE-ORDER:
https://hypaethralrecords.com/collections/eveale
https://hypaethralrecords.bandcamp.com/album/enter-the-woodland-realm
https://fiadh.bandcamp.com/album/enter-the-woodland-realm

EVEALE:
https://eveale.com
https://bsky.app/profile/eveale.bsky.social
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61573219976620
https://www.instagram.com/evealeblackmetal