Cruachan – Blood on the Black Robe (2011)

Five years have passed since “The Morrigan's Call” and Cruachan shows no sign of slowing down, with “Blood on the Black Robe” the band makes a very solid return. As the current Celtic/Folk Metal scene is watered down with releases that sound like the “Braveheart” soundtrack, it is very nice to get one that focuses more on the guitars and aggressiveness of the music.

I have always liked the band since their 1995 debut “Tuatha Na Gael”, and with every release they show more maturity and refinement in their sound, and now they return to the killer aggressive style from their earlier days. “Blood on the Black Robe” is no exception, the band exploits their guitar driven sound with catchy sections and effective use of Folk elements.

With almost 60 minutes of music, this release flows very nicely from heavier guitar driven songs (the first 6-7 tracks), to more ‘elaborate’ Folk-ish pieces near the end. We like this flow since the band builds up with aggressive songs and delivers the ‘softer blows’ near the end, making the listening experience very well balanced. We prefer albums like this since too many whistles, flutes, and pipes at the beginning of a release kill the mood too early.

“I Am Warrior” and “The Column” quickly set the mood with very catchy riffs, tight drumming and powerful vocals. There is a dated sound to the band’s music and we completely love it.  The melodic guitar sections of songs like “Thy Kingdom Gone” even reminded us of Orphaned Land, but with a Celtic edge.

Besides the band’s powerful guitars and vocals, the instrumentation in this release is very diverse and well used. Nothing is ever abused, and this is one of the many reasons we love the band. The use of female vocals in “An Bean Sidhe” and “The Voyage of Bran” is really well incorporated and provides a nice change of pace.

All in all, we have to say that “Blood on the Black Robe” returns the band to the original path of Cruachan: powerful and straightforward folk Metal music. The band has maintained its quality over the years and with this release they keep refining their core sound. If you are interested in solid Pagan/Folk Metal, with a bigger emphasis on the Metal side of things, check this release out.

Release: April 18th, 2011

Country: Ireland