Ered Wethrin
Tides of War

NSP 120 :  Ered Wethrin - Tides of War DigiCD

  

Release date: February 14th, 2014

Thanks to Lightfox for uploading the video!


Besides the extremely successful CALADAN BROOD and GALLOWBRAID, ERED WETHRIN is the 3rd band from Salt Lake City, Utah, that signed to Northern Silence, and occasionally it may remind the listener of CALADAN BROOD or SUMMONING.

While the lyrics also deal with epic fantasy themes (Horus Heresy, Black Company, Malazan Book of the Fallen, etc.), the style of the music tends more towards the Scandinavian Symphonic Black Metal of the 90s on the one hand, reminiscent of bands like THY SERPENT (Fin), ODIUM (Nor) or WALLACHIA (Nor), as well as more "classic" Black Metal with occasional keyboards on the other, such as EVILFEAST (Pol), ANCIENT (Nor) or DARK FORTRESS (Ger), as well as AETERNUS (Nor) or SATANIC WARMASTER (Fin).

Ultimately, Ered Wethrin focuses on riffs and lyrics to evoke feelings that go with triumphant victory and the cost of its attainment, to bitter defeat and despair, to a melancholic solace that can permeate moods in the wake of a grandiose and epic calamity. The band was started as, and remains to this day, a solo-project in 2004, and the songs on "Tides of War" are, for the most part, material that has been written during these earlier years of the project's existence.

The CD comes in 4-page digipack with 8-page booklet and golden disc, and is limited to 900 copies.


Tracklist:

1. Frozen Rivers 9:40
2. Frigid Tides 9:56
3. Bloody Annals and Brooding Skies 10:28
4. Into the Stars 11:40
5. Realm of the Tyrant 5:06
6. Requiem for the Fallen 14:18
7. Stellar Graveyard 6:34


Website:

Offical Facebook page


Reviews:

"Ered Wethrin joins the roster of amazingly well written epic atmospheric black metal from the city of Salt Lake in Utah. If you’ve heard of Gallowbraid and Caladan Brood, you’re most likely going to be fawning over this project as well. Tides of War marks as this one man band’s debut album and starts off the year in an explosive fashion with raw vocals accentuating over beautifully carved synths and desolate yet melodic guitar riffs. Ered Wethrin isn’t doing anything revolutionary in this style, but the presentation and energy is undoubtedly top notch."
(9/10 - Against Magazine)

"Der aus Salt Lake City (Utah) stammende Symphonic Black Metaller Ered Wethrin legt mit „Tides Of War“ ein starkes Machwerk vor und befindet sich dabei in guter Gesellschaft mit den ebenfalls bei dem deutschen Label Northen Silence angesiedelten Bands Caladan Brood und Gallowbraid. Der Hang zu Fantasy Themen fließt dabei, in die mit marginaler Keyboarduntermalung versehenen und teilweise epischen, beziehungsweise kompromisslos ausgerichteten Kompositionen deutlich mit ein."
(8/10 - www.crossfire-metal.de)

"Hit play on opener “Frozen Rivers” and prepare for a primer on mid-paced fantasy-driven black metal [...] Every track on the album is anthemic, but never contrived—these songs flow well, especially impressive given that all but one clocks in around ten minutes or longer."
(www.invisibleoranges.com)


"Die Garde des Neunziger-Black Metal, angereichert mit symphonischen Einschlägen, dürfte bei diesem Output schnell feuchte Augen bekommen. [...] ...ausufernde Tapping-Teppiche treffen auf rasende Riffs, die auf Synthesizern reiten. Auch ist man sich nicht zu schade, aus bekannten Summoning Gefilden auszubrechen und ein Groove-Massaker in Form von ‘Realm Of The Tyrant’ abzufeuern, ohne dabei an epischen Momenten einzubüßen. Den ultimativen Gänsehaut-Overkill vollzieht man mit ‘Requiem For The Fallen’, bei dem aller Bombast gebündelt und komprimiert auf den Hörer losgelassen wird. Die Songs wurden in eine Staubsauger-Produktion gepresst und danach mit viel Liebe zum Detail abgemischt. Unterm Strich herausgekommen ist dabei ein epischer und gleichzeitig dreckiger Bastard, der sowohl bekannte Pfade austritt, als auch innovative Ideen mitbringt."
(12/15 - Legacy Mag)

"Ered Withrin bring us epic, melodic black metal in the vein of Summoning, complete with drum computer and synths. The inspiration for this solo project is drawn from fantasy books and movies. Music wise, Sven Smith creates landscapes we know from Lord Of The Rings and other tales of Hyperboric fantasy. It would be easy to write of Ered Wethrin as a Summoning clone, yet there is more to the music on Tides Of War. One can detect a certain influence from the eastern European black metal. There are hints of Drudkh and Nokturnal Mortum to be found. Sound wise this is quite good, considering the fact that it is all recorded and mixed by Sven himself. No murky bedroom antics, but a clear and spacious sound. The level of playing is also good and the vocals are pleasant. All in all an enjoyable mix of atmosphere and dreamy melodies. A good piece of nostalgia. There also lies the weakness of this album. It lacks a face and sound truly its own. But I have high hopes for the future."
(75/100 - www.lordsofmetal.nl)

"If you know Summoning, then you already have a very good idea of what will await you on Tides of War, Ered Wethrin’s debut. Harsh, raspy vocals, melodic riffing, atmospheric keyboards and a drum computer, so if you look for huge and groundbreaking innovation, keep on looking, if you look for quality, though, you should keep on reading and if Summoning are part of your daily routine, then you have to keep reading, because this will be a delicacy for your ears for sure! One-man crew Sven Smith is in business with long, epic compositions, averaging at almost ten minutes, so no blitzkrieg attacks here. Instead he creates fantasy-inspired epics that weave atmospheric melodies with the sub-genre’s trademark drum sound whose kind of mechanical sound forms a counterpart to the warm keyboards, while the raspy vocals ARE the contrast. And the best thing is that despite their length he manages to keep them interesting and tense, avoiding superfluous fillers or too dragged out instrumental passages. And to simply write them off as a mere Summoning clone would also do Ered Wethrin injustice, since they just draw influence yet there is more than superficially catches the eye. [...] For a one-man operation the sound possesses this amazing clarity that allows the atmosphere to unfold and permeate each song. Ered Wethrin should quickly garner a sizeable following among the atmospheric black metal aficionados since Smith takes his Summoning influence and runs with it, expanding it where necessary without straying too far to make it a cohesive whole that should not just bear tides of war but also tidings of impending greatness. Check out Tides of War, which has turned out to be an impressive debut and catapults Ered Wethrin a few levels higher within the sub-genre."
(8.5/10 - www.metal-observer.com)

"The music is composed on black metal guitar riffing mainly based on old school influences coming from various Norwegian black metal acts. Some references and links with Aeternus and alike are welcome as well. Also, the vocals are very aggressive so the same goes for the tempo and the style of playing 8so, the final product is less ambient comparing to other NSP bands and releases). Those lovers of aggressive black metal but with epic touch will suerly love Ered Wethrin. If you are following NSP releases then ”Tides of War” is yet one more record for you. The music is still epic although that this is different style comparing to Caladan Brood or Emyl Muil."
(8/10 - www.metal-sound.net)

"“Tides of War” is a very long album, since its 7 songs last for almost 68 minutes. Ered Wethrin play epic black metal with atmospheric black metal elements and some symphonic touches. The band has a quite raw old school black metal sound and its music is closer to the underground aesthetic. Sven uses beautiful atmospheric background synths, his compositions though are clearly guitar driven. He does a great job with beautiful epic guitar riffs and melodic leads, that most of the time move in slow and mid tempos; five of the songs clock at 10 minutes or longer. I’d say that Ered Wethrin belong to the “brutal” side of epic fantasy-based black metal and at the same time they have found a very interesting balance between aggression and melody."
(8.5/10 - www.metalsoundscapes.com)

"What a lovely piece of music, indeed! [...] All the songs go straight to the hearts of fans (as did in my case), but the best ones are: the melancholic and aggressive “Frozen Rivers” (with slower tempo, and good drumming), the more introspective “Frigid Tides”, the excellent “Bloody Annals and Brooding Skies” (the vocals are fine, remembering something done by Lord Kaiaphas, former vocalist from ANCIENT, and the guitars are louder here, showing a great work with riffs…), and the more traditional (in Black Metal terms, please) “Realm of the Tyrant”. Great work, and hope Sven will bring something more to us as soon as possible!"
(www.metal-temple.com)

"One-man project called ERED WETHRIN has finally released its debut album. This symphonic black metal band works with various themes from fantasy or sci-fi literature. „Tides of War“ is a great example of well-worked album, because every track has its own storyline. During listetning to this album, you sometimes feel like a powerful warrior on a battlefield."
(8/10 - www.mortemzine.net)

"Auffällig sind bei Ered Wethrin die besonders ausgeprägten und melodischen Gitarren-Riffs sowie die Klangfülle der Keyboardsounds. Alles in allem bietet „Tides of War“ ein breites und sehr warmes Klangspektrum. Während bei manch anderer Band die Kombination aus Keyboards und Metal zum Kitsch verkommt, weil die Keyboards einfach nur nach Plastik klingen, herrscht bei Ered Wethrin eine wirklich dichte Atmosphäre vor. Das Album nimmt den Hörer mit auf eine Reise durch ganz verschiedene Gefühlswelten. [...] „Tides of War“ ist ein gelungenes Debüt, das den Spagat zwischen kaltem Black Metal und einer dichten Atmosphäre glänzend meistert."
(www.nachtaktiv-magazin.com)

"Das Ein-Mann-Projekt aus Salt Lake City hat sich zwar dem epischen Black Metal verschrieben, lässt aber die gesamte Bandbreite an Einflüssen der mittleren bis späten Neunziger in seinen Sound einfließen. Das heißt, es geht deutlich riffbetonter zu, als bei den oben genannten Referenzbands, und man weist den Keyboards eine wesentlich dezentere Rolle zu. [...] die sechs sehr langen Kompositionen fallen durchweg interessant aus, vermögen den Hörer zu fesseln und immer wieder für packende Momente zu sorgen. [...] Alle Lieder sind auf ihre Weise toll, doch mir persönlich haben es vor allem 'Bloody Annals And Brooding Skies' und das abschließende 'Requiem For The Fallen' angetan, die mit ihren elegant eingeflochtenen Chören, den effektvollen Rhythmuswechseln und einfachen, aber faszinierenden Melodien immer wieder dafür sorgen, dass ich mich in der Musik von ERED WETHRIN verliere. Somit ist "Tides Of War" eine tolle Angelegenheit für alle, die sich von Innovationen fernhalten, ihren Black Metal episch, atmosphärisch und fantastisch mögen, sich aber etwas mehr Durchschlagskraft als bei SUMMONING wünschen."
(8.5/10 - www.powermetal.de)

"Facettenreich, mehrdimensional und breit arrangiert kommt "Tides Of War" daher und beruft sich auf eine sehr melodische, symphonische Spielweise des Black Metals. Genretypische Gitarrenmelodien treffen auf opulente Keyboard-Klänge und ein großen Ideenreichtum im Songwriting. Diverse Rhythmus- und Stimmungswechsel sind für das Album maßgeblich. So werden die sechs Songs, die fast alle eine deutliche Überlänge haben, zu spannenden Hörerlebnissen mit vielen Höhepunkten und einem großen Wiedererkennungswert. [...] Vergleichen lässt sich das Gebotene vielleicht mit den ersten beiden Alben von "Summoning" oder dem alten Schaffen von "Ancient". Eingängig, monumental und stimmungsvoll klingt so das Gebotene, welches auch die richtige Produktion gefunden hat. Modern genug, um alle Einzelheiten in das rechte Licht zu rücken, doch nicht zu überproduziert. Eben genau so, wie man es von einem derartigen Album erwartet. "Ered Wethrin" legt mit "Tides Of War" ein eindrucksvolles Debütalbum vor. Selten sind Erstlingswerke bereits so ausgereift und detailliert, was die Freude beim Hören entsprechend steigert."
(8/10 - www.rottinghill.at)

"The guitar work is strong and epic as that of said noted earlier bands as well as all other instruments on the album. The vocals are very unearthly and haunting as if the ancient spirits are speaking of gallant wars. A highly recommended album and the perfectly blended debut release by Ered Wethrin which surely could sit on your shelf next to all the other great black metal artists you own because this album will surely become a classic over the years."
(www.themetalfoundry.net)

"Fazit: Wer seinen Black Metal episch, atmosphärisch und fantastisch mag, ist bei Ered Wethrin bestens aufgehoben. Selten sind Erstlingswerke so ausgereift und detailliert. Da macht das Hören gleich viel mehr Spaß."
(8.5/10 - www.time-for-metal.eu)


Interviews:

www.lordsofmetal.nl