Arizona metallers Adavant return after nearly 5 years with their latest epic folk metal adventure entitled the “The Unyielding” (release date Jan. 27, 2018).
One of the reasons I’m a fan of folk metal is that, perhaps along with black metal, it provides as much room for creativity and innovation as any metal subgenre. The spectrum of “folk metal” ranges from acts that are essentially power metal with a dash of pipework, to others oozing in Renfair culture. Adavant takes full advantage of this artistic liberty, while still hewing close enough to traditional orchestrations to not scare off old-school metalheads.
The Unyielding is a concept album with a clear and riveting story, successfully communicated through both lyrics and sound. The album opens with the Dimsician Overture, an instrumental/orchestral track that effectively previews the entire opus. As well-crafted as that track is, I actually encourage the first-time listener to bypass it and dive right into the second song. It will be on the third or fourth time playing the album – when the audience has familiarity with all the song melodies – that this track will find its fullest appreciation.
Without spoiling the plot, Advant have crafted a tale that doesn’t go where you think it will, deftly surprising with alliances crossed and anti-hero morphing to hero and vis versa. The choruses in the songs Stumbling Huntsman and Renegade Ridge find this contrast played out perfectly, with each drunken gang singing to laud their cause as right and just. Story aside, most of the tracks are strong enough to stand on their own, with highlights such as Overgaard and Gallows Pass providing plenty of uptempo kick for the casual headbanger. And the song Fairhaven is a rowdy stomper, with the chorus giving an effective interplay between Charlotte the Alluring’s operatic highs and the growls of Nathan the Ravenous.
The band works the narrative arc perfectly, with the lyrics at times delivered in the first person of specific characters, othertimes on behalf of the crowd, and elsewhere simply narrating the tale through its myriad twists and turns. In whatever voice, the audience find themselves fully is immersed in the vividly unfolding story. And when we reach the final scene and the chorus from Gallows Pass comes back around, repurposed and with layers of meaning unforeseen… I honestly get goosebumps!
I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention the hidden, “bonus” track – Rise of the Splinterbeasts. Different in feel and execution from the rest of the album. This is an unexpected gem – clever and fun – well done Adavant!
One other positive from this album that simply cannot be ignored is the detail and craftsmanship that went into the CD booklet. In this age when, too often, “less is more”, the band has taken the time, effort, and expense to make an album you want in physical copy. I don’t know which member or members of Adavant are the gamers, but the story is straight out of a dungeons and dragons adventure, and the band appropriately includes a middle-earth style map to help the listener envision the fantasy world created thru the music.
It is not to disparage their previous efforts that I can honestly say Adavant have made a huge leap in their songwriting and overall production quality on The Unyielding. I give it a rating of 9 out of ten, and for me this is a strong contender as one of the top metal albums of 2018.