Ashen Light from Moscow, Russia, started in 1997. This is their debut album, and it bears a Russian title. Apparently it translates to "Veles song". Ashen Light's chosen style is symphonic folk-inspired Black Metal. A certain trademark in their sound is the synth flute, which drives the music forward with a handful of catchy riffs. The sound of the flute is perhaps a bit plastic, but it's catchy and original, so who cares? There is also quite a bit of atmospheric choir synths here, which, especially on one of the tracks bears a certain reminiscence to the mood of Dimmu Borgir's 'Stormblåst' album. Over all, Ashen Light is quite a bit more catchy and melodic than the mentioned Dimmu album though, which is fine by me. Although there is quite a bit of synth in these songs, it's allright because the guitars are still the main instrument here. Ashen Light is very melodic, with loads of tremolo playing leading the way and synths such as choirs and harps supporting the melody lines. This seems to be a bit folk inspired, and many tracks possess a medieval amosphere, but no matter what, this album is filled to the brim with excellent melodies and a catchy drive which puts me in a great mood. The only weakness is that some songs are a little bit repetitive in the way that some parts re-appear quite a few times through the song. But if you like your black metal melodic and catchy, Ashen Light would definately be worth checking out! Non-stop catchyness!
| Alex | acoustic, lead, rhythm guitars & keyboards |
| Emur | acoustic, rhythm guitars |
| Usegard | vocals & 5-string bass |
| Niyan | keyboards |
| Smurd | drums & percussion |
28.March.2004