It was a little over two years ago that I reviewed the debut EP from then newly formed Chicago metal supergroup, Fer de Lance. Although it was merely a brief 4 song, 20ish minute effort, it was enough to get me excited for the future of this outfit, whatever that future may be. There were some personnel changes along the way. Smoulder guitarist Collin Wolf out; Beastlurker guitarist Jason Geist, Sept of Memnon drummer Travis Scudder, and Midnight Dice frontwoman Mandy Martillo in. But while the faces of Fer de Lance have changed, their mission to create truly genre defying metal remains the same.
This leads us to the release of the band’s debut full length, The Hyperborean. An ambitious outing for this collective of scene veterans, The Hyperborean expands upon the initial musical ideas of Colossus in ways that keep you hooked from beginning to end. Aside from the instrumental “Aurora Borealis” that serves as the album’s intro, each piece is lengthy, epic journey with accentuation on vast atmosphere and dynamic songwriting. Yet while The Hyperborean clocks in at nearly an hour, it sure doesn’t feel like it. I got too lost in the music to notice!
The Hyperborean relies heavily on the dramatic Viking spirit of 90s Bathory and thick mesmerizing riffing of classic doom metal. This combination of styles alone would be enough to write about, but as I mentioned, there’s even more at play this time around. For one, there’s the incorporation of folksy acoustic passages that add an additional layer of depth. Performed with grace by Martillo, these sections are prevalent on cuts such as “The Mariner” and “Northern Skies”, the latter of which would make Jethro Tull, Led Zeppelin, and other early 70s progenitors of the folksy hard rock sound proud. I’d feel wrong to label these songs “folk metal”, especially considering what passes for such these days, but they’re definitely metal with folk elements.
Another key component of The Hyperborean is black metal, whose influence rears its demonic head all throughout the album. I can’t help but think this is partially due to the inclusion of Geist, who churns out unholy riffage on the regular with his main vehicle, Beastlurker. It only makes sense that tracks like “Ad Bestias”, which sounds like Dio fronting a 90s black metal band, and the overly aggressive “Arctic Winds” would showcase some of these blackened tropes. The occasional guttural vocals of frontman MP play a role as well, although not necessarily as prevalent.
Fer de Lance blurs the lines between traditional and extreme, heavy and light, and just about every other contrasting force in between. Subgenres be damned. The Hyperborean basks in its sheer unpredictability. It’s progressive without losing the plot, doomy without being boring, blackened without the gimmickry, and epic without being pompous. Okay, maybe there’s just some “pomp” at play, but you’d have to be a hipster dork, jealous, or both to not appreciate that. As for Fer de Lance, they remain venomous as ever, ready to strike at any given moment. Where will you be when you feel their bite?
8 out of 10
Label: Cruz del Sur Music
Genre: Epic Heavy Metal
For fans of: Bathory, Atlantean Kodex, Dawnbringer