Havukruunu represents pagan/viking metal at its very best.
These Finnish masters take those sounds and infuse them with raw and soaring black metal, giving that old sound a fun and triumphant flair without descending into the cheesy depths. What makes the difference is the composition. It’s “pagan” or “folky” because of the feeling you get from the synchronization of the riffs, drums and chants — not from a bunch of flutes or references to mead shoved in your face.
On their latest album, Uinuos Syömein Sota, the band revives the best of the tradition of bands like Ulver, Kampfar and Windir, while never just ripping them off. This is the music that takes you to far away places, distant lands, and kingdoms lost to history. If you want visions of swords, sorcery and epic landscapes, but want that cold, riff-driven darkness left intact, this is essential black metal listening.
Check out “Kunnes Varjot Saa” (which I think roughly translates to “Until the Shadows Come”) below and get lost in its mesmerizing glory.
