Kraftheim - Midgards Zorn (2009)

"Midgards Zorn" found it's way from Germany to our lair last week and as soon as we popped the CD in we got hooked into it. This band plays a very interesting mix of Viking Metal and Rock with some influences of Punk (like Glittertind).

Kraftheim's album features 11 songs all sang in German which gives this album that German Rock dimension as well, making the band extremely versatile when it comes to combining genres allowing them to have a fresh sound, something that is hard to come by in the last few years.

While I enjoy listening to Viking Metal or Rock, sometimes I find the vocals a bit tiresome and Kraftheim's vocalist falls under that category since his vocals are pretty standard for the genre, but very linear in my opinion, exploring different sounds/styles would probably make future releases more interesting. However, I'm not saying the vocals are bad, since they are pretty standard for the type of music and they make the songs come together nicely.

The guitar riffs and melodies are what make this release entertaining for me since they make all songs very enjoyable and give the Viking feeling the band is shooting for, without the need of keyboards or any other instruments. They don't sound as heavy as Tyr's guitars, but they definitely get the job done in creating a good atmosphere.

The mixture of genres this band makes is the second thing that appeals me the most of this band, since they have their strong Viking influence while alternate within Rock and Metal for their guitar and drum tracks, also the singing style sometimes sounds like Punk Rock, making this album very different from what we usually review, but very enjoyable for anybody that likes either of the previously mentioned genres.

The overall atmosphere created by the music is very well crafted and while at times it might fell repetitive, it's still pretty enjoyable. It makes me wonder why this band has not been signed yet. So if you like Viking Rock with a bit of a Punk edge to it go and get this release.

Release: 2009

Country: Germany