Asgaard – W sercu nieświata EP
Wormholedeath/ The Orchard/ Sony Music Ent.
Release Date: 30/06/23
Running Time: 14:24
Review by Beth Jones
9/10
For those who don’t know me well, I’ll let you into a little secret. While I love a range of Heavy and Dark genres of metal, I’m a real sucker for a lilting, mournful, folky acoustic guitar. I spent a good few years in a folk-rock band, and there’s something about the marriage of voice and acoustic instruments that really speaks to my heart. So, when looking for something to review in our ever-growing review list, I spotted a release that was genred ‘Acoustic version Transgressive Dark Rock’, and my ears pricked up!
Hailing from Poland, Transgressive Dark Rock / Metal band Asgaard released their 7th full-length album, “What if…”, last year, after signing with Wormholedeath late in 2021. This little 3 track EP takes tracks from that album and reimagines them acoustically.
Flumen, the band’s keyboard maestro, said about the EP “Acoustic songs were born out of need to create a new form, without distortion, heavy guitars, or massive sounding drums, in order to unearth qualities hidden in this music, at least on a surface level. Recording these songs in a non-metal manner was an entirely new challenge for us. We wanted to prove to ourselves – as well as to our fans – that we can successfully tackle playing in a different style, that we are open and versatile musicians and not afraid to try new things.”
Well Flumen, and the rest of the band, I will kick this review off by saying you have absolutely achieved this, with a huge degree of prowess. I am also hugely jealous that you got to play a stunningly old and beautiful sounding piano (an 1895 Małecki upright, in the chamber music hall of Warsaw Music School, for those who like technical detail)!
The EP kicks off with ‘Sny na jawie’, an incredibly mournful tune, opening with solitary guitar, joined by keys after the first few bars, and then the sultry vocals of Quazarre. This track is performed entirely in Polish, but their YouTube video of the original album track has the English translation of the lyrics. The title translates to ‘Daydreaming’ and the lyrical content is a poetic vision, which to me speaks of departed love. This really is a beautiful track, both in lyrical content and musical interpretation.
‘What if…’ is next. This was the title track of the 2022 album. Again, this is a song charting lost love, and missed opportunity. It’s delicate and tender in its approach, and in some sections of this, the tone of Quazarre’s voice almost takes on the sound of a Viola. I actually think strings would be a perfect further addition to this track. Despite this being acoustic, the band manage to grow the track to a crescendo for the middle section. And there’s some interesting percussive sounds added in just after this, which give it an extra layer.
The final, and title track, ‘W sercu nieświata’ is another lilting, dark melody of self-reflection, and existential crisis. I had to use google translate for the lyrics for this one, but again it’s masterfully poetic, and beautiful in its darkness.
I think this EP is wonderful, and my only gripe is that there isn’t enough of it. I definitely think this band of accomplished musicians need to explore further into acoustic realms, as they’ve certainly got the hang of it! If you like gothic, mournful, and lilting, this is an EP you need to check out.
‘What If…’ (Acoustic Version) Official Video
TRACKLISTING:
01. Sny na jawie (acoustic version)
02. What if… (acoustic version)
03. W sercu nieświata (acoustic version)
LINE-UP:
Quazarre – Vocals
Hetzer – Acoustic Guitars
Flumen – Upright Piano, Brush Snare
LINKS:
Disclaimer: This review is solely the property of Beth Jones and Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of both parties. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.