Release date: 02-02-2024
With members who graduated from the Metal Factory, we aren’t surprised another band emerges from Eindhoven. Vrode is a young Blackened Pagan Folk band, and they released their debut album ‘Ostracized’ about a month ago. We had the track ‘Bezekers Deception’ in our latest releases playlist for a while, but now it’s time to discuss the full album.
About Vrode
In line with what another Dutch band, Solarcycles, does, Vrode is all about the source of life; nature and earth. Nordic Mythology and Nordic instruments are combined with haunting vocal melodies and a layer of black metal. Vrode has their imagery on point; from logo to band photos and stage presentation, they deliver on the Pagan vibe.
Ostracized is a concept album about a Viking Warrior and the war that occurred to his village. He sets out to make things right, in the hope of maybe revenge or redemption. Since it’s a bit hard to follow the lyrics, I’m not sure how the story ends. But vocalist Yanou explains at least the concept behind the first two tracks on YouTube so that we might get the rest of the story there as well!
Ostracized
Ostracized starts with the track Sykdomsfjell, an opening track that sets the mood for the rest of the album. It sounds almost like a movie soundtrack, with haunting voices and birds in the background, and of course the use of different instruments. With Striith the album really starts. Well, actually we first have to listen to another intro, since the track doesn’t really kick off till about two minutes in. It makes sense, in this track, since the first part of the track is the preparation for the battle to come. We hear the sounds of battle in the background to add to the story. Other than that, the track is a bit bland. Too much repetition, so Vrode doesn’t manage to surprise me yet.
Ostracized, the title track of the album, is much more Black Metal influenced. What Vrode does well, as well as on the previous track by the way, is the use of multiple vocalists. We have two types of female vocals, layered with heavy grunts. There are also more interesting chord progressions and melodies on this track. The intro and outro of this track are really nice, and luckily we get a lot more of that on the album.
Speaking of; the album is a mix of slower, more melodic, Pagan tracks and a few heavier, more up-tempo, Black Metal influenced tracks. There is however a lot of repetition, in a trance-like way, probably in the same way Heillung does, but it doesn’t really work on all tracks yet.
Sometimes, Vrode shines though. Heritage of the Highlighlands is a great example of that. The multiple vocals, the throat singing, the melodies, and the use of instruments is great. No wonder it’s one of the most-played tracks on the album according to Spotify. Berserkers’ Deception is another example, though in the other direction. Where Heritage of the Highlands is heavy on the Pagan side, Beserkers’ Deception is more on the black metal spectrum. This track is probably also one of the heavier of the album. The shouting vocals are powerful on this track, and the melodies haunting to add to the anxiety. Even with this track though, after hearing it six or seven times, the vocals feel too repeating to me. It’s also because the vocal melodies are a little too monotonous, again, maybe trance-inducingly so.
Speaking of heavy tracks, MordBrann starts as probably the heaviest track. It translates to ‘Arson’ and I assume this is the redemption track for our main character. After the fast, heavy intro, midway through the song, the tempo drops, and the song changes completely. It makes for an interesting listen and this is another track where Vrode manages to surprise me.
The album ends with Silent Prayer. It’s the appropriate ending to this album, concluding the tale of battle. Yanou shows her vocal versatility well with a beautiful melody on this short concluding track, but I secretly wish these vocals would have been on the rest of the tracks as well, to make it a little less monotonous.
Final thoughts
Vrode released a great debut album, and I’m certainly curious to hear more from this band. It isn’t the perfect album yet though. I see where they were trying to go with this, but there is some room for improvement. The more I hear it, the more that grows on me. The parts with multiple vocals and pagan instruments are great, but on the more black metal parts, the vocals are too much of the same. Even though I like the shouting vocals since they are powerful, and Yanou shows us with Silent Prayer she is more than capable of great melodies. That being said; it’s great that we have a Blackened Pagan band from our own soil, since the Dutch scene is still lacking Pagan and Folk bands. And I would love to hear more!
Tracklisting:
Sykdomsfjell
Striith
Ostracized
Ascending
Heritage of the Highlands
Beserkers’ Deception
Mordbrann
A Silent Prayer
You can find Vrode on Facebook and of course on Spotify. Want to hear more Dutch black metal bands? Check out our database.
