While one half of the Faroe Islands' population unsuccessfully tries to qualify for the European Football Championship, the other half tries its hand on the musical front as part of the melodic Viking folk metal project called TYR. And the latter endeavor works out far better for the Faroese than it does for their football-playing compatriots.
"Ragnarok" is the third album from this sensational formation from the northern islands. This time the release was fully recorded with the support of Napalm Records (the previous one was only reissued on Napalm with two additional bonus tracks and new cover art).
Viking metal as performed by TYR sounds very fresh and promising. TYR have managed to present their own take on the genre -- with progressive arrangements, rhythmic shifts, and original clean and beautiful vocals courtesy of Heri Joensen. Some musical motifs and part of the lyrics are, as before, drawn from Faroese folk tradition, which is another distinctive feature of the band. By the way, the album boasts a whopping 16 tracks -- unusual for Viking metal, you'll agree. But don't worry: between nearly every full-length track there's an instrumental piece of 1-2 minutes. And the excellent opener The Beginning knocks you off your feet instantly -- a five-minute "wordless" masterpiece that sets a very positive mood for the rest of the material. But further along, a fly lands in our barrel of honey. The thing is, for all its merits and originality, the material is somewhat monotonous, and due to the absence of memorable choruses, the album starts to feel a bit stale by the midpoint and sort of passes by your consciousness.
The guys have enormous potential, so everything still lies ahead for them -- and who knows, maybe in time even the footballers will manage something.