Tag: Russia

  • Book reviews by Steve Earles, November 2017

    Book reviews by Steve Earles, November 2017

    Military, Political & Social History Rebellion in the Reign of Charles II Written by Julian Whitehead Published by Pen & Sword History The Restoration is one of the most fascinating periods of history, and certainly a great favourite of mine. King Charles II (known with good reason as the Merry Monarch as is well known from…

  • Pereplut – At The Ancient Times

    Pereplut – At The Ancient Times

    Pagan folk metal from Russia. I don’t understand the lyrics but the music is excellent. It does conjure up images of a world where Baba Yaga waits for the unexpected in a darkened forest. Production and musicianship is first class, at times melancholy but most cheerful… like a Russian Skyclad or Mael Mhordha. Love the cover artwork…

  • Downcast Twilight – Under the Wings of the Aquila

    Downcast Twilight – Under the Wings of the Aquila

    Hailing from Russia, but with lyrics in English, Downcast Twilight are most accomplished musicians and could compete on any international stage. Their song-writing is strong, the tracks all cover various periods in history, and clearly a lot of work has gone into their production. It is death metal with folk influences, but really it has…

  • Paganfest Tour @ Tremont Music Hall, Charlotte NC, April 8, 2012

    Paganfest Tour @ Tremont Music Hall, Charlotte NC, April 8, 2012

    “Although I did see the inaugural version of Paganfest, I’ve missed the rest throughout the past few years due to whatever reason. Sometimes the tour date didn’t come quite close enough and sometimes it was a job issue. But with the lineup for this year’s show being pretty awesome and the measly one hour drive…

  • Old Wainds: Death Nord Kult

    Apparently it’s pretty cold in Murmansk. Less chilly is Death Nord Kult, the latest release from Old Wainds. They hail from northern Russia, and thus it’s not overly surprising that their brand of black metal is all about darkness, the arctic, and geographical isolation.

  • Forest Stream’s Somn on Songwriting and Storytelling

    I asked Forest Stream if they consider their music to be driven more by emotion, storytelling, visual imagery, social interactions, or something else altogether. Somn replied:

  • Forest Stream: Nature and Society, Misery and Hope

    “Russia is a very good country in many ways, but that is also the country I, personally, hate many things about. The main issue causing this glaringly negative feeling is human indifference. Sometimes it reaches the top level of some sort of cold desperation, and it starts being felt like absolutely nobody cares about anything.…

  • Forest Stream: The Crown Of Winter

    Russia’s Forest Stream have released their second full-length album after their almost fifteen years of existence, and the end result is a collection of songs that really work in all their multiple elements and many potential influences.