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Has anyone else heard of this band and their third release recently put out just a bit earlier this month? They're an excellent atmospheric folk/black metal band and from the two tracks I've heard so far from Guardians they seem to be keeping the quality high still. Their previous one; Aura, is a favourite of mine and I'm looking forward to hearing the other three tracks from the album after I buy it later this month. Of the two tracks I've heard so far, I prefer "The Declaration" to "Guardians" but they're both very good anyways.
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I have, but I haven't checked out Guardians yet though I plan on it. The only album I've listened to by Saor is Aura, I thought it was good though my opinion is that it could benefit greatly from a better production which is probably amusing considering it's black metal, but still.
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18-11-2016, 06:23
(This post was last modified: 18-11-2016, 06:40 by MythsOfMetal.)
I liked Aura's production with the hard hitting drums and heaviest flute in recorded history :wink: though the guitar riffs seemed a little buried. This album has gotten a better response production wise from what I've seen on metal-archives. Everything seems more balanced, the symphonic stuff is often at the forefront still but not so overbearing, it also gives way more often for the guitars to take the lead, and the drums have been dialed back quite a bit. The riffs are still pretty par for the course of atmospheric black metal but are more discernable than a good chunk of Aura. Though Aura still had a fair share of discernable riffs as far as I could hear, though they weren't often in the forefront.
Edit: I've heard that the later tracks on Guardians is where it really shines. I'm listening to Autumn Rain now on bandcamp and it's my favourite so far, so there may be truth to this. Here's to hoping it gets even better!
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I'll check out Guardians to see what I think of it then. I love how the flute was used on Aura actually and I like the atmosphere of the album. Yeah the guitar riffs were too buried and I kept wondering how amazing Aura would sound with a less muddy production. I guess that's a common criticism of it.
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18-11-2016, 06:49
(This post was last modified: 18-11-2016, 06:53 by MythsOfMetal.)
The flute and ethereal vocals have some very good parts on the track Autumn Rain. I'm told that the later tracks are even better, so there may be better yet. I would check it out from the first track onwards but don't give up unless you're still disappointed by the end of the third track, which I doubt you'd be since you liked Aura.
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I think I might have listened to SAOR previously. I remember the name!! I go on a hunt for new metal music, make a list, sometimes I listen to some of it, sometimes none of it!...so much metal of various genres out there..somewhat overwhelming at times ! It can certainly make your head spin! Thanks for the Saor recommendation Myths! It goes directly to my To Listen To file! The albums sounds interesting and intriguing!
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SteveO Wrote:I think I might have listened to SAOR previously. I remember the name!! I go on a hunt for new metal music, make a list, sometimes I listen to some of it, sometimes none of it!...so much metal of various genres out there..somewhat overwhelming at times ! It can certainly make your head spin! Thanks for the Saor recommendation Myths! It goes directly to my To Listen To file! The albums sounds interesting and intriguing!
Their second album: Aura is probably the best one to start with, but their third being this one is still very good and I've heard good things about their debut, so checking out all of them would be worth eventually doing.
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Guardians does have a better production. I think it's pretty cool so far and The Declaration is a good song, yes. I like the different instruments on the album.
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Oceansoul Wrote:Guardians does have a better production. I think it's pretty cool so far and The Declaration is a good song, yes. I like the different instruments on the album.
The bagpipe and violins along with the flute were quite cool. What did you think of the track Autumn Rain? It's my favourite of the album by a fair margin, it captured almost all of Saor's best qualities with the various instruments, ethereal vocals, grand atmosphere and good guitar parts. It just lacked some great drumming, though what was there is more fitting for this song than if they played them like on Aura, so it's acceptable as it gels well with what else which is going on in the song.
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MythsOfMetal Wrote:The bagpipe and violins along with the flute were quite cool. What did you think of the track Autumn Rain? It's my favourite of the album by a fair margin, it captured almost all of Saor's best qualities with the various instruments, ethereal vocals, grand atmosphere and good guitar parts. It just lacked some great drumming, though what was there is more fitting for this song than if they played them like on Aura, so it's acceptable as it gels well with what else which is going on in the song.
Autumn Rain is one of my favorite tracks on the album. The album takes me somewhere else for a little while in my mind and the atmosphere feels epic and sometimes melancholic. I'm getting the feeling of what makes the band "Saor" from it, if that makes any sense.
