Recommendation: Waylander - Reawakening Pride Once Lost

[Dark One]

1. Sunrise
2. Born to the Fight
3. With Veins Afire
4. Emain Macha - http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=328F3B9E11904427
5. Gaelic Dawn
6. Once Upon an Era - http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=22494FD11EDFE696
7. A Hero's Lament
8. King of the Fairies
9. Keen of Knowledge
10. Victory Feast
11. Awakening - http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=4239C754677DFDA5


From the rolling, majestic and serene hills of Ireland a united voice known as Waylander triumphantly bring forth a thunderous tribute to a proud past. Folk influences & battlefield riffs, poetic passages & grim visions, pride & bloodlust - all elements are present in the Gaelic brilliance that is Waylander - Reawakening Pride Once Lost.

Recently reissued (and distributed in the U.S. through The End Records), Reawakening Pride Once Lost showcases the heritage and musical talents of band co-founders the O'Hagan brothers (Cíaran and Dermot, vocals and guitars respectively). Pagan themes and the unique utilization of the tin-whistle abound in this powerful tribute to an era of clan unity and fighting alongside your brother for the honor of both land and heritage.

The utilization of growls and folky-yet-thunderous riffing are prominent throughout. The growls are a bit raw sounding, but not to the point of being inaccessible. There are some beautiful acoustic passages as well to complement and bridge the mayhem taking place all around. While chaotic at times, there is an admirable quality to the sound - it's as if an authentic atmosphere was truly strived for, and achieved.

It is clear that Waylander are not out to capitalize on any trends or vastly employed styles - they are out to showcase the pride they have in their heritage and to relay that pride through their unique version of pagan metal. This is a debut album well worth owning. This is a debut album worth playing with pride.

 

[dill_the_devil]

Nice reco, Dark One - forceful, heavy, energetic and fun.

 

[Dark One]

Thanks dill. I've wanted to discuss this more in the past, but the debut release has been relatively hard to track down until it's recent re-issue. With the reincarnation of the reco threads, this seemed like the perfect time to unleash the battlefield.

 

[dill_the_devil]

I'm at the finale of 'Awakening' right now - yeah, this fucken rules - makes me want to have a swordfight with my shadow.

 

[J.]

ive got the original. it's ok. i prefer Cruachan's debut, myslef. but good reco

 

[Dark One]

Surprised basically nobody is checking this out. This seems like a very RC friendly recommendation. Oh well.

 

[Doom]

Emain Macha is pretty kickass, really like that one. The other two sound pretty good too on first listen.

I'd be curious to hear what their follow up album sounded like.

 

[Dark One]

Emain Macha is pretty kickass, really like that one. The other two sound pretty good too on first listen.

Cool - I figured this would definitely click with some people around these parts if they gave the uploads a chance.

I'd be curious to hear what their follow up album sounded like.

That would be "The Light, the Dark and the Endless Knot". Not quite as memorable as the first, but it had enough worthwhile moments to keep a good thing going. They're FINALLY recording their 3rd full length this year.

 

[Dark One]

Well, from the two people that have provided feedback (J. already owns it), we're two for two on positives.

 

[Reign in Acai]

I'll be picking this one up for sure after being sold by the song "Awakening". All hail Ireland in all it's glory!

 

[Nico]

Does that off-key tin whistle annoy the fuck out of anyone else?

 

[Reign in Acai]

No.

 

[Dark One]

Not at all. Though, given it's uniqueness I can understand how it might distract or annoy others.

 

[Dark One]

I'll be picking this one up for sure after being sold by the song "Awakening". All hail Ireland in all it's glory!

Awesome, thanks for giving it a chance!

 

[Tranquillian]

Listened to it today but after 3-4 songs I switched to someting else, I will give it another try.

 

[spaffe]

After the first litsten these songs keep humming in the back of my head, I reckon they will be fast stuck rather soon. Good reco!

 

[JayKeeley]

Does that off-key tin whistle annoy the fuck out of anyone else?

it wouldn't have if you hadn't said anything lol, now that's all i can focus on.

otherwise, this is good stuff -- there's something raw about it all. "The growls are a bit raw sounding, but not to the point of being inaccessible"....still pretty grim, particularly on the second sample.

Few more listens for me, but not bad on first spin.

 

[Dark One]

it wouldn't have if you hadn't said anything lol, now that's all i can focus on.

LOL

otherwise, this is good stuff -- there's something raw about it all. "The growls are a bit raw sounding, but not to the point of being inaccessible"....still pretty grim, particularly on the second sample.

Yep, I definitely agree on the second song I posted the vocals are quite grim - they're pretty unique though in that the growl pitch tends to change cadences in various songs (not to a huge degree, but enough to notice). Anyway, I'm glad you pointed that out because I wanted to select a nice range of songs that showcase the spectrum of their sound on that album.

Few more listens for me, but not bad on first spin.

The full album is definitely a grower as well.

 

[Dark One]

JayKeeley, to further illustrate my point about the vocals, I present another track off the album, the awesome "With Veins Afire". Fairly raw, but more accessible on this track:

http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=A7FABB5D05F49DBE

 

[General Zod]

I finally got around to listening to these samples. Not for me. There's just nothing going on that draws me in. Thanks for the reco none the less (nice write up).

Zod