Suidakra - Book of Dowth [2011]

I often don't care to involve myself with bands that possess a mountain of releases so abruptly in the discography, but hearing of the supposed glory of Suidakra's newest release, I figured it was worth checking out. From what I can tell, Suidakra comes from a long line of bands that attempt to pack numerous styles into one homogeneous sound; and luckily, just as comparable bands like Enslaved and Agalloch have as of late, they triumphantly succeed here. Book of Dowth finds a compelling balance between crushing heaviness, medieval narrative, and artsy folk. The genre is arguable, to say the least. Is it medieval power metal? Black? Death? Folk? The debate could go on forever. I'll just refer to it as what it is: good music.

There's an underlying concept to the whole project, a factor that nearly always enhances an album's entertainment level. It's about stuff like "stones of power," "magical books," and "evil warlords," which could easily take away from the release if they weren't executed so well. The lyrics are eloquently written for the most part, never pushing the pretentious envelope or taking a path too cheesy. Still, those alone aren't the biggest part of Book of Dowth's success. The music overcomes the story and fits all the carefully crafted pieces into one shaplely, concise puzzle. Even though there's a sense of variety and a tendency to catch one off guard, nothing ever feels out of place or distracting. A perfect example of this was my initial listening of the album. After the first two similar songs, I suspected a no surprises, typical affair of heavy epic metal, but no! "Biróg's Oath" completely eradicated this conjecture with a catchy anthem complemented by female vocals and folksy acoustics.

Next, "Mag Mell" totally slayed by offering up a light-hearted rendition of power metal, utilizing yet another vocal style with a voice that could be compared to Hansi Kürsch. Then, without missing a beat, the album effortlessly returns to the heavier style it stormed in with. Although the tactic is risky, Suidakra reaps the rewards; I didn't find myself distracted or bothered by any of the album's elements for the full duration (a scant forty minutes for some, a full release for me). With my personal preferences, of course, I tend to favor the tracks with a heavier gratuity of clean vocals and catchiness. "Stone of the Seven Suns" fits that description perfectly with its awesome chorus, easily my favorite of the release. I don't mean to imply that the heavier songs are without merit, either. I particularly favor opener "Dowth 2059" and closer "Fury Fomoraigh" for their take-charge attitude. The album also begins and ends with short instrumental pieces to add to the atmosphere.

Against all odds, I enjoyed Suidakra's latest effort quite a bit. Some possible turn offs for listeners could be the lyrical content, the fact that the style changes with each song, and the mixture of only slightly similar vocal styles, but none of these possible detractors bothered me too much. In fact, when it comes to releases such as this, I tend to want those varieties. Book of Dowth sorta falls out of my realm, but even though it isn't exactly my cup of tea and I probably won't be rushing to listen to it all the time, there's a quality here that cannot be denied. The music is simple. It's probably nothing you haven't heard before, but that's not the point; you just rarely hear it done this well.

   Overall: 7.5/10 (Good)