Album Review: King of the North by Wolfheart (Napalm Records)

Melodic death metallers, Wolfheart will release their next album, King of the North, on September 16, 2022 via Napalm Records.

The nine-track offering picks up right where their last two releases left off – taking every aspect of their trademark blend of colossal melodies, earth-shaking vocals, gripping lyricism and driving rhythms to searing new levels. Wolfheart have proven themselves to be one of metal’s most captivating acts of northern heritage and one of the fastest rising bands in the international melodic death metal scene. Over the course of the last two years alone, the band has remained relentless with the release of their highly acclaimed full-length, Wolves of Karelia (2020) and Skull Soldiers EP (2021), gaining massive praise from fans and press alike with their icy tales of battle and triumph.

Each song on King Of The North is dedicated to a different story of Finnish mythology – underlined by Wolfheart’s grand, crushing song writing and production.

Wolfheart are Tuomas Saukkonen on guitar and vocals, Joonas Kauppinen on drums, Lauri Silvonen on bass and vocals and Vagelis Karzis on guitars and vocals.

King of the North comes with 9 powerful and meaty tracks to get your teeth in to. We get underway with the mammoth 7 and a half minute long Skyforger. A melodic intro with a sombre undertone gives way to the heavier instruments with a thick and meaty sound. It builds in power and poise, adding backing choirs, building and building into a fiery and ferocious beast of a track. It evolves, twists and turns, with visceral growled vocals and blasting drums suddenly dropping into clean vocals and bass led riffing.  The vocals are stunning, the combination of styles working wonders while the lead guitars mix up quick riffs and glorious leads perfectly. A super strong, creative and emotive opener to King of the North.

Ancestor follows and features Jesse Leach of Killswitch Engage fame, is a massive frostbitten anthem, unleashing Wolfheart at their most crushing with vicious blast beats and cutting-edge vocal performances. A catchy as hell chorus, partly thanks to Jesse’s inimitable vocals, makes this absolute banger of a song.  Knell brings the power metal vibe hard with a wonderfully emphatic intro where the lead guitars shine bright backed by symphonic sounds. The keyboard/piano melodies throughout alongside the harsh vocals are a treat as is the screaming solo.

Desolated Land goes for a full on assault in a ferocious beast of metal with intense drumming and hyper riffing. It settles into a groovier rhythm that is headbanging made, though that intro still echoes through me. A powerful, cleaner chorus elevates things further in a firm favourite of mine. Wolfheart are on top form here. The King tells the tale of a forest god, with horns and pianos accompanying heavy guitar riffs and solos, in the more power/folk metal style. Its a stunning track, absolutely gorgeous but still more than meaty enough to keep those fists pumping and necks moving. King of the North then raises the energy levels once more on the relentless Cold Flame, featuring Karl Sanders of the legendary Nile.

Headstones and Fires of the Fallen keep the quality coming. The former being a powerful grooving track with more choir backing, huge riffs and melodies and a steady drum beat that keeps heads banging. Stunning melodic slow downs lull you in before the heaviness drops with deep, dark vocals and crushing riffage. The latter hitting with more speed and energy but plenty of Wolfheart moments, from the soaring backing to the intense riffing. It’s a banger and may also have the best chorus on the while of King of the North where the harmonised vocals with cleans and harsh combining creates a hair raising soundscape.

We end this stunner of an album with Eternal Slumber, a strong closer that starts off with that sombre, symphonic sound, building patiently. Growing. A piano, some backing and then here comes the drums and guitars. We hit the heavy for a bit before dropping into yet another mammoth chorus that you just have to enjoy. It’s impossible not to feel involved and affected. The solo is a corker before another chorus leads us to the end.

King of the North is a really top album. A wonderful slab of melodic death metal, crafted with loads of attention to detail and intricate mythology-driven storytelling. Chock full of moments that could be categorised as power, or folk, or symphonic but still death metal at it’s core, it’s a fascinating journey. One that starts with quality and ends with quality and never drops off on the journey. King of the North really shows how far Wolfheart have come as a band with an album that exudes quality, variety and excitement.

Do yourself and your ears a favour and head on over to Napalm Records to grab a copy of this cracking album, here.

Wolfheart Links

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