After three very interesting releases, covering each a specific color and theme, it was about time Erdenstern explored the dark. When I heard speak about a 4th album of the band I was not all that thrilled to be honest. Small weaknesses on the other releases have been the lack of variation. Even though it has been but small holes in the otherwise magical armor, it made me not so thrilled.
Going into an album that way as a journalist is a good thing. What I hear on this new Erdenstern album is the without a doubt best Erdenstern album up to date. As the other releases have been very good this album put the band in the top of the food chain!
The pure darkness, variation, wonderful choirs, good horror mood, great chants, rituals and atmosphere is what make this album so alive. This even though it´s an album about death.
This time the melodies have taken a step back and instead made way for more experimentation and pure good old horror feel. Still with a freshness and high standard as Erdenstern is known for.
At times this wonderful album tend to be a little too much background music for my taste but as the band wants to do music for RPG games that is intentional and it works!
The artwork is high class but I did not like the pictures of the members. Nothing against them as persons at all but the photos and the way they were inserted is not so good. Comments on the back about being a small label and telling people to not "rouge or pirate".
What I really love with this album and band is the precision which they keep within a set out border! Sometimes with Erdensterns releases you think it is music to a film. They even work with themes or at least very similar melodies. That could be a bit too much but here it is done with more skill than before and with more care to details. I really enjoy listen to this album and if you like fantasy music you should check this one out. You should also (for the first time maybe) get a really good kick out of this album if you like dark ambient. A band such as Shinjuku Thief comes to mind.
Good work Erdenstern!

The sound of this album reminds me of art music and I like the fact that this kind of performance music (strange they don´t do performances!) are released by cold meat!!!
The bizarre cabaret/musical style vocals seem to be very inspired by Mr Doctor of Devil Doll.

The Percussions are almost on all tracks the main instrument and they sometimes seem a bit weak when they flirt with triphop/trippjazz. Sometimes they are very good!
The industrial parts are also pretty lame. It´s really a shame as the sound and some of the ideas are really great. "On Tuoni Pauloo Tinkoin Sitein III" the dark ambience is and atmosphere is intruiging and very suggestive. Reminds me of bands like Lycia.
The song "Black Globe" is a five star track. Very haunting and driven into strange corners.
"Wish Upon a Fallen Star" sounds like wild opera (but the voice is failing and not as good as for an example Sibelian).

The whole album breath 30s and 40s and retro film music and that I really enjoy. If that good have been a more obvious red thread I would have given this release probably a 4,5 or 5 but the diversity (normally really good) kill this album.
"Wann Endet die Zeit" could been so good but the drums are lame and to be honest: bad!

It hurts me giving this crazy and well played album such a low grade. Sorry!
If you are into a strange mix of goth, industrial, darkwave, neo-classical, retro, tripjazz and dark ambient all at once (yes it´s crazy) you should check this album out. Do not expect to love all tracks because some are great and some suck.

Music by gamers for gamers.

Dronolan’s Tower is the one man project of David Allen Young. His ideas for the soundtrack stile music did not sound as he wanted when making the music by himself so he hired an orchestra and a choir in Hollywood to do it for him. The result is medieval fantasy mood music with more hints of darkness than light.
If you like bands like Erdenstern you will probably drool while listening to Dronolan’s Tower.
When I saw the artwork I thought of Midnight Syndicate but oh so wrong I was. This is far beyond what Midnight Syndicate could even dream of!
It’s actually in the same league as the more experienced top dogs in this genre.
"The Battle of Shadow pass" is without a doubt the best track on the CD and I love it.

I have almost nothing bad to say about this great release. I though would like to hear something a bit more unique from time to time.
David list (on his myspace site) John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer, Basil Poledouris (and others) as influences and you can hear that in the music. Some might say too much.
To be honest this is a very good and ambitious project which I cannot other than applaud!

Abnocto and the debut "Simon Magus" is something I can listen to over and over again.
To say I was looking forward to hearing "Simon Magus" is somewhat of an understatement - amongst the numerous other groups that inhabit the more spiritual side of the dark ambient genre, Abnocto are probably the best of them all!

Simon Heath (Za Frûmi, Atrium Carceri) and Simon Kölle (Za Frûmi, Musterion) have with Abnocto managed to seemingly effortlessly produce yet another stunningly unique and voyeuristic glimpse in their own domain of ultra dark music, which is as you'd expect as perfect as it is haunting.
All ambient/industrial/experimental fans should add "Simon Magus" to their collections.

Abnocto recorded the album 60 meters underground Stockholm. That is something insane but I am sure it gave something to the music. The underground and the solitude bring the recording to very unique level.

The only negative and sad thing with this CD is that it should have been released years ago (as it was recorded some years back). The music is beyond time for sure but I can only dream of what the duo could do with Abnocto today!?

I would consider this disc good accompaniment for reading your favorite horror, sci-fi or fantasy novel.

Ivan Racheck

Hail Waerloga Records and Radio Rivendell!
This is the compilation I have always wanted to hear. Waerloga compilation vol. 1 - A tribute to Uglakh was the start and this is one hell of a follow up!
The music on this compilation has a lot of atmosphere and there are some excellent contributions on it.

I have to admit I was concerned at first when I heard about this release. Waerloga in Rivendell? Sounds like a collaboration between dark fantasy and elvish Enya fantasy. I looked up Radio Rivendell and found out I was all wrong. The radio station focuses mainly on fantasy music as a whole and not only on cheesy girlish fantasy. Why I even, in the first place, thought Radio Rivendell had to be only about new age and Enya I do not know. Probably because many of the elven inspired bands have hijacked elves and made the songs about them into pop and cheesy garbish. Maybe only me being cynical?
Instead of my fear I found that many of the songs played on the radio are from films. Andres or "Elrond" as he calls himself on the radio webpage have gathered some of the best soundtracks that fit. He has also computer game music scores, music from dark ambient and neo-classical acts. Arcana have many albums on the show as an example.

A funny side note is that the Waerloga records band Za Frûmi has divided the radio station in two! I know it because the radio station let listeners make short reviews of the song they hear or heard before. In the comments most people love and adore Za Frûmi but the haters are loud and seem to represent another side of fantasy.
The ambient scene have since long been divided in cells/groups. Is it time for the fantasy inspired music scene (dark ambient, neoclassical, folk/medieval, computer game music, film music and dark soundscapes) to experience the same as the ambient scene did a while back?
If so (sorry if this is already happening but if it does it is not something many do) would the stiles be named: Dark fantasy, elvish fantasy, orcish fantasy, Hollywood fantasy, Zimmer fantasy or maybe even Conan (insert favorite film) fantasy?
Or, maybe not.

Back to the compilation.
Best known names for me are Abnocto (I just wrote a review of their debut, but knew of them from before from some other good compilations), Erdenstern, Rising Shadows and Morgan the Bard. But there are a couple of really cool surprises on this compilation from bands that I had not heard about from before!

Erdenstern have a suite on the compilation, containing the two main themes, "Into The Green" and the heroes theme, combined into a whole story in short. The song is remixed especially for the compilation. Erdenstern picked the piece as a "special" for the CD, and as an attraction to all the people who liked the bands music and already have "Into The Green". The song is very good and Erdenstern fits a compilation like this perfectly!

Another German is Markus Holler which are the computer game composer of (among others) "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Shadow of Chernobyl". Marcus song is the first on the CD and it is very well written and performed.

The third German act is called Balaghan and is the solo project of Bernard Kahlen. His music is also game music fantasy with melodies that get you think about role-playing games (as with Erdenstern) such as Dungeons & Dragons RPG.

Two acts originate from England. Tincolindo and Helen Trevilion.
The last act is, known for her website called destiny hikari, kind of the lighter of the pieces on the album.
I listened to some of her material on her site and it often are a bit to much pop for my taste but in some songs she shine like the true star she could be!
The song on this album is wonderful and a great way to end the compilation.
Tincolindo´s song "Priestess of Avalon" is very easy to understand its inspiration. As you hear the song you can see the mist, the ship and the island.

Two of the more odd pieces come from Italy. Morgan the bard and Project Morfeo.
Morgan the bard has been on compilations such as one tributing Falkenbach. The original black metal version of "Galdralag" has been composed by Falkenbach. The track got several dimensions and I can clearly hear the inspiration of Summoning mixed with Medieval-Troubadour & Renaissance music. The song works best in the beginning and then kind of drifts away. I knew of Morgan the bard from before and I think the track is mighty fine.
Project Morfeo start their song with some old school sounds of a dragon and work through different passages in the composition. I like some passages, dislike some and love others.

The lone warrior from New Zealand goes under the name Tom W Hall. The info pages about this compilation give me some info: "On the compilation we can hear the original "prototype" version of what became three lengthier parts used as the soundtrack for Sarah Forgan's "Freakshow - Performing Secrets" piece at the Dunedin Fringe Festival 2006.".
The song is very easy to like. It got a dark and rather melancholy feel to it. Very much like film music to some dark thriller or drama maybe? I feel sadness in the song. It ends with some strange industrial thing which could maybe been shorten a little. This is a very good track!

Another lone wolf (when it comes to origin) is Dimitrij Volstoj. He is a Russian director, conductor and composer of music. He is also known for his work arranging choirs. Dimitrij is living in Canada (Saskatchewan).
According to the info page about the release "Dimitrij fled Russia in the early 80s and still have some legal issues with his birth town which make him use different artistic names. Even the name Dimitrij Volstoj is not his real name. "
His music is dark as hell and he got the without a doubt best track name "Bleeding the bishop". The track is dark and atmospherically with female and male vocals.

From USA the compilation got two game music composers: Willbert Roget II and Sean Beeson. Both are very talented!
Willbert with the track "Atonement" have a very likable piece of dark soundtrack music. The track is very well written.
Sean Beeson has done music for films which one can hear in his music. Like "Atonement" the track "Voice of the Seraphim" is very well written and beautiful. I would like to hear more of both of these composers for sure!

Then we have the Swedes. They have no less than five acts on this compilation CD.
Abnocto (Simon Heath and Simon Kölle) have a track called "Spiritus arma" which is very atmospheric and dark. This is also the opening track on
Abnocto´s debut album entitled "Simon Magus". As you see it’s the name Simon that’s in focus a lot. The track is one of the best on the compilation and that says a lot.
Rising Shadows (Fredrik Klingwall and Linda-li Dahlin) had an interesting debut album released some while back and this track was very much sounding like it. Pretty slow and enchanting track. It is not the best song made by Rising Shadows but I like it.
Two Swedish brothers Mikael & Daniel Tjernberg are Lost Kingdom. They appear with a track called "In heaven". Hell, I am in heaven listening to it. It is neo-classical with a touch of both romanticism and modernism. I want to hear more from this duo. I would love for them to Explore in the further regions of experience. Demons to some. Angels to others. Something like that.
What I mean is that if I lack something it is a touch of more darkness. Very intriguing and nice track.
Another very cool and fresh track comes from Sibelian. A Swedish project of Stephen John Svanholm. According to the info page he (in the 80s and early 90s) played lead guitar in a British funk metal band called Ignorance, releasing two CDs and touring extensively. After this he went on to study classical music at University and then specialize in opera singing at Music College in England.
You can on his track "Wish Fulfilling Jewel" here a very unique mix of opera (no words), chanting and moody music.
Gargrim the liar is the project of Andres aka Elrond. The track "The Pavilion" is one of the best on the compilation!
It has a slow and searching beginning but after a while it is pure magic. Very atmospheric, beautiful and haunting.

If you want to dream of great fantasy worlds you should purchase this compilation.

Make sure to check out Radio Rivendell (Radio station): http://www.radiorivendell.com

An inspiring album with a lot of talented artists!