Four albums and an EP seems to be a winning formula for Gävle, Sweden’s magnificent Viking Metal kings Ereb Altor. They did it after their first four records, and wittingly or unwittingly, they have repeated this formula once more. Set to release Eldens Boning on May 7, 2021 via Hammerheart Records, the criminally underrated purveyors of all things Norse mythology treat fans to four new quite memorable songs, released to the world in a vinyl-only package.
Opening things up with “The Twilight Ship,” a long and winding journey featuring sweeping clean vocal arrangements and that harrowing, tale-telling atmosphere begun by Bathory and sharpened by the likes of Ereb Altor. Coming next is the acoustic, dulcet “Fenrisulven,” a bit of a departure for the band and something that works really well within the spectrum of bardic tale-telling honed across their eight full-length albums. The title track is vintage Ereb Altor, swirling between the worlds of Pagan Metal and Black Metal from which the band has emerged. Concluding the proceedings is the speedy “Sacrifice 2.0,” which seems to be a follow-up to a song of the same name from an earlier release.
All told, the quality found in Ereb Altor’s music is never overlooked or compromised. They are one of the best at their craft, and have never been affected by the ups and downs going on within the more commercial end of Folk Metal. For this reason, Cryptic Rock gives Eldens Boning 4 out of 5 stars.
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