Hexvessel – Iron Marsh (2013)

Staying busy after the release of “No Holier Temple”, today we have Hexvessel’s “Iron Marsh”, their latest EP delivering five tracks of their very enigmatic Psychedelic Neofolk music. Featuring over 30 minutes music, this EP is the perfect companion for a hike on the woods in a dark and gloomy day. Fronted by Mat "Kvohst" McNerney, this band has a very unique sound to them that will give you goosebumps thanks to their very dark and eerie atmospheres.

Opening with the jazzy “Masks Of The Universe”, the trumpets nicely create a very unique and lounge-like atmosphere. Kimmo Helén greatly helps the band build a very unique atmosphere with him handling the keyboards, trumpet, and violin duties. McNerney’s vocals are pretty solid and very soothing for the band’s music and are greatly enhanced by the backing vocals provided by Marja Konttinen. This track also clocks in at 13 minutes, making it almost half the EP.

Straightforward and with a more dramatic tone, “Superstitious Currents” keeps things somber and quite relaxing. The new version of “Tunnel at the End of the Light” is actually quite cool and the dual vocals make it very engaging. This track has a very nice and elegant feel to it that showcases the band’s excellent melancholic musical style. With a certain apocalyptic feeling, “Don’t Break the Curse” mixes soothing spoken sections, acoustic guitars, and a very interesting tempo that keeps the listener at the edge of their seats. This track features Alia O'Brien of Blood Ceremony on the flute, and it certainly adds a magical element to it.

Our absolute favorite track in this release is the super catchy “Woman of Salem”, a Yoko Ono cover featuring the angelic vocals of Rosalie Cunningham of Purson. The way the band delivers this track is quite spectacular and after we saw them live at Roadburn 2013 with it, we became even bigger fans of the band. For an EP, “Iron Marsh” is quite an impressive release that any fan of the band must get. If you like dark neofolk music with a psychedelic edge, look no further and get all of the band’s releases.

Release: May 10th, 2013

Genre: Psychedelic Neofolk

Country: Finland