TÝR, the Faroe Islands-based Viking Metal group, are set to deliver their ninth full-length studio album, Battle Ballads, on April 12, 2024 via Metal Blade Records. Following their 2019 album Hel, TÝR also collaborated in 2020 with the Symphony Orchestra of the Faroe Islands, resulting in a live CD/DVD release that really confirmed their spirit of exploration.
With this new album, TÝR intentionally pared down any extraneous complexity in favor of doing something novel. They built their songs in medieval fashion around a few recurring themes and surrounded those themes with orchestration inspired by Classical music. The result is a high-energy, super-evocative collection that makes you feel swept back into the days of medieval epic poetry.
The idea for the musical approach to Battle Ballads came to Frontman Heri Joensen; because of their experiences working with the Symphony Orchestra. Afterwards, he could not shake the idea that creating a more expansive orchestrated sound for the next album could work for them, but only if they also stayed true to their Metal core. This in mind, the band took on a new songwriting and recording approach. They tracked compositions which were then arranged by friend Lars Winther, bringing a full orchestral sound. This in mind, instruments added included violins, violas, cellos, woodwinds, and horns, and there was fine tuning later to bring those two halves of the composition more fully into alignment.
These details explained, TÝR make an excellent choice in opening the album with “Hammered,” which actually begins with the sound of metal ringing against metal, giving way to a very fast tempo that swerves and alternates around a central narrative. The story is a reminder of medieval traditions behind the making and naming of weapons, which often endowed them with even greater cultural significance and inspired fear on the battlefield. This song really grounds their album in a sense of the past, not just imagined, but real.
Furthermore, TÝR also brings in a mythical touch with “Dragons Never Die.” The musical themes introduced to the track absolutely sound like the basis of medieval compositions that then develop and expand into a gigantic sound. The band also uses both clear, melodic vocals as the centerpiece of the song while interweaving choral vocals, which evokes musical traditions of the past. This blending of vocal approaches is something we also see elsewhere on the album.
Then, while “Hammered” focuses on the life of a sword, “Axes” quite directly elaborates on the extremely important role that axes played in Scandinavian society, but also highlights the role of feuding and vengeance in stories from the medieval period. Opening with medieval-sounding horns, like those that would sound before battle, the track turns on a cycle of violence and a first-person perspective of bravery and savagery. Also important to note, the video for “Axes” has an excellent locale of a medieval village with turf roofs and live-action fighting that is well-worth viewing.
Everything else considered, the title-track serves as the perfect central statement about this collection of songs. It illustrates the new songwriting approach, having a very central melodic vocal while orchestration is built up around it. It also lyrically speaks about the desire to hear old ‘tales,’ urging someone to sing the songs that convey epic stories. The lyrics even hint at a reason for remembering old stories, to challenge the idea of mortality and fading from memory. While the lyrics are relatively simple, the rising tone and repetition of the song make it surprisingly hopeful.
In the end, TÝR’s Battle Ballads takes an idea and runs with it as the band brings the ‘Classical’ to their work in a manner that shows their range, and also the potential for hybrids of Metal music. The authenticity of the result packs a solid Metal punch while bringing Folk and Classical elements to bear. Who knows where TÝR might choose to go from here, but Cryptic Rock gives Battle Ballads 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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