Heathen Foray – Oathbreaker
Release Date: 7th April 2022
Label: Massacre Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Melodic Death Metal, Pagan Metal, Neo-Pagan Death Metal.
FFO: Insomnium, Manegarm, Amon Amarth.
Review By: Kira L. Schlechter
Pagan metal doesn’t have to focus on what it MEANT to be pagan back in the day. It can also take a more modern bent, examining what it MEANS to be pagan now – call it neo-paganism, as the Austrian band Heathen Foray does.
They share that philosophy on their superb new album “Oathbreaker,” the follow-up to their equally excellent 2020 effort, “Weltenwandel.” Singer Robert Schroll, guitarists Jürgen Brüder and Alex Wildinger, bassist Max Wildinger, and drummer Markus “Puma” Kügerl have crafted an economical eight tracks that are personal, pointed, and powerful.
Sung in English and German, a first for the band, the title track bears a definite message about climate change and rampant capitalism: we have broken our vow to protect the earth, and we will pay. Their music is certainly pummelling and heavy, but it’s always crisp and light, with plenty of airiness and room, never oppressive. Jurgen’s guitar melodies skew folk frequently, especially in the pre-choruses and solo moments here. Robert’s harsh vocals are distinct, well enunciated, never too bogged down in his technique or in the mix to blur what he’s actually saying. The words that introduce each verse are very carefully chosen in light of the message – “deforestation,” “contamination,” “desolation,” “emigration,” and most importantly, “extinction” if we keep this up. The verses too are also pointed, “Verdant green turns to grey” and “Deep blue life spring turns to brown” on the environmental angle, and “Life is worthless, money matters/Ancient values, manners shatter” on the political one.
“Leben” (“life”), sung in German, is, according to the album bio, “a tale of losing your childlike curiosity and imagination while being formed into a ‘productive member’ of society.” Musically, it’s a showcase of Jurgen’s tasteful ear and sticky melodies and of Markus’ super-precise (and superfast) drumming. The chorus is a definite sing-along (or hum-along); the pre-chorus serves as a terrific launchpad to kick it off each time. A quieter bridge features military-style snare drumming and lovely acoustic guitar; the final chorus at first slows and elongates, then it modulates, becoming more optimistic, and it changes lyrically too, seemingly to reflect that.
The bio says that the band “collected stories and quotes from (late) relatives” for “Ahnenreih” (“line of ancestors”) “show(ing) us that we all stand on the shoulders of giants.” Performed in their native local dialect of Styrian-German, it is decidedly folky, with a lilting 6/8 tempo and soaring guitar melodies – the drumming, however, couldn’t be more metal; Markus’ blast beats have to be heard to be believed. The chorus is poignant and sweet; the bridge reflective and sparse, smartly without drums to spoil the mood. It, too, modulates in the final chorus, solidifying its folk foundation to the end.
Heathen Foray isn’t finished speaking its mind yet – “Heimdall’s Spross” (“scion of Heimdall”) is another warning “about the impending doom of the environmental apocalypse,” according to the bio. The Heimdall of the title, by the way, is the father of mankind in Norse mythology, son of Odin – so the title itself marks us as his children. Also in German, it’s brief and punchy with a fantastic groove. A series of really effective little pauses in the chorus give it a most appealing bounce; the guitar melody in the refrains before the chorus is resonant and emotional.
But they do know how to have fun now and then. “Allvoll” (or “always full”) is a tongue-in-cheek, mock-serious tribute to the magic of well-crafted water, barley, and hops. Despite its cheery chorus that makes you want to wave your stein, schlager music this ain’t – it’s snarled and chugging (no pun intended) and waggish, Robert roaring at one point, “Gib mir mein Bier.” They finish it with a growling series of toasts in various languages, including their own, “Prost!”
Again switching between German and English, “1000 Years Of Human Flesh” is built on a stellar shimmering guitar melody and a hammering, battering groove. The bio says it’s specifically about “the burning of heretics in Europe in the year 1022 (the Orléans heresy)” and notes that “one thousand years later, the influence of the church is still strong in countries like Austria.” The grinding, dirge-like, somber chorus is hypnotic and damning: “Longing eternally/For an unknown destiny/No shepherd will save our soul (a Christ reference)/You are part of the whole,” or your survival is dependent upon you, not any divine intervention. A beautifully wrenching guitar solo is followed by a whispered bridge that mourns those lost in the purging: “1000 years of human flesh/Empty husks on rotten soil/Every drop, part of the river/Knowledge lost forever.” The chorus turns raging at the end, almost to remind us, as they hint at in the bio, that we still haven’t learned – really well done.
Done completely in English, “Raiment,” a commentary on “greed, exploitation, and child labor” – and rampant consumerism – takes its swirling, undulating main melody and tempo from Indian music, and it’s terrific. Each time it comes up, you enjoy it more. The imagery is vivid in the verses, telling the child’s tragic story in carefully chosen detail (“A burning sight, poisoned air/Desolate bleak, desperate soul/Caught up in a rat race”), and the faster, urgent chorus is what the world is demanding of her and her kind: “We need more, forever more/Our hunger shall be appeased/We need more, forever more/Nowhere enough, devouring disease.” They’ve become really accomplished social commentators, and this is an excellent example of their skill at doing so.
Mixing German and English once more to finish the album, the call to arms “Covenant Of Swords” gives a thematic nod to Heathen Foray’s Viking metal roots with its message of resilience and self-reliance. This is especially clear in the first passage in English: “What’s your calling?/Ask yourself why you persist/Here’s your calling/Take your place, you do exist … Is it not you, who chooses the path?” That’s not only personal commentary, but it’s also a reference to the metal community, it seems, as is the pre-chorus, where Robert urges, “Tear off your anguish/Obliterate your agony/Shout it out loud/We are free.” It’s a welcome positive note on which to wrap up an outstanding effort.
(5 / 5)
