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Midjungards - From Scandza - Reviewed By Jenny Tate! Wednesday December 27 2023, 4:05 PM

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Midjungards - From Scandza - Reviewed By Jenny Tate ! Check it out https://jennytate.wordpress.com/2023/09/21/midjungards-from-scandza/

A Viking/thrash metal band, formed in late 2006, Midjungards was formerly known as Viriato. Of Finnish origin, featuring Toni (Hell-Train), Nanda, Panello, Pascual, Paco Munoz, Tatu Ruotsalainen (Dead Loss), Israel Real (Bladzam, Dead Loss, Sacrament) and Timmo Salakka, their live debut took place in Spain, in 2011.

Remaining together, whilst taking a back seat, for numerous years, the band used the time to progress and better their sound and inspirations. This led them to research the background of the goths of old. Life happened, meanwhile and so the debut album, ‘From Scandza’ was finally recorded in 2021/2022, at Finnvox Studios.

Midjungards are now booked for various festival slots. Time travel with them, as their epic Viking sound transports you back to gothic days of old. ‘FS’ is out, now.

Intro – Cinematic sound effects and narrative intro. Visually evocative of mediaeval battles, on horseback, with lots of sword and dagger action.

Hordes Of Hate – Bold, doom opening, with sinister undercurrents. Steady pace, featuring acoustic tones, amid the amplification. Lots of cymbal action. Speeding up, 1/4 in. Adopting a stronger metallic tone, accompanied by powerful drum rolls and shouted vocals. Chaotic, but colourful. Conveying the frantic mood, well. Alternating the rhythms, from the bridge and returning to the doom emphasis. More melodic vocals combine with the shouts, ¾ in. A busy track, enthusiastically delivered. Fading, smoothly.

Dark Streets – Good, metallic intro blast)! Finding its feet, quickly and into a comfortable refrain. Group harmonies, sung in roughened Viking style. Decent melodic riffs. An uplifting number, with a good steady rhythm. Could perhaps do with more sung vocals, but it’s an enjoyable listen, with something of a Maiden tinge to the riffs. Just slightly too repetitive, though and more vocals needed.

Still Here – Sharp riff opening! Electrifying stuff. Big, bold drum hits, well timed and spaced. Good underlying rhythms. Accessibly steady. Again, it needs more lyrical content. Exuberant execution and mainly shouted focus. It works, melodically, but it needs more meat on the bones, in structural terms.

From Scandza To Covadongo – Tasteful steel string opening, timing those cymbal flourishes well. Clear bass lines. A little mystery injected, here. Boosting the vocal intensity, ¼ in, though the lyrics need greater clarity. As before, it’s mainly roared and shouted, which although it’s a deliberate effect, could really use some more melody. Good percussive sections, sustaining the rhythms; especially at the bridge, from which, some inventive riffage follows. After a while, the shouts get a bit much to bear, so definitely much more melodic emphasis necessary. Returning to the steel string tones, ¾ in, before the whole song explodes, while the steel strings continue on, till the end.

Hidden Fatality – An intriguingly folky intro, with an interesting instrumental combo. A fresh sound, with a prominent, low toned bass line, underneath. Bursting into life, with crowd noises, towards the bridge. Clear aggression, throughout. Big, volumatic atmospherics. Enthused shouts, verging on anthemic. Good clear melodies, ending on another enthused shout.

The Day After – Big, booming drum and riff opening. Notably ominous bass line. Carefully spaced beats. More aggressive shouts. The bass lines enhance the doom aspect, while the drums build it higher. Unrestrained vocal exuberance. Good uniting riff melody. Once more, way more shouts than sung vocals, but that strong, consistent drum rhythm sustains the song’s height. Effective cymbal close.

Entering The History – Fast-paced, exciting opening)! Straight out, speed emphasis. Rapid shred-fest, featuring plenty of powerful bass. Here, the riff melody’s the central connecting component. Cutting the end off, definitively, but a bit too suddenly.

Sons Of Gaut – Simple, but tuneful intro melody. Single-noted tones are joined, by accompanying riffs, as the bass line hums, beneath. Good, consistent drum beats. A sung vocal enters, ¼ in, with more melody, following. An enigmatic element rears its head. Liking that tangy riff section. Opening forth, to crowd clamour and chaos, briefly, at the bridge, alternately returning. The sheen on the riff sounds is the USP, here. It’s a basic underlying tone, but it works. Even if it does get a bit repetitive. Certainly more variety needed, towards the end.

Fire Storm – Good strong drum beats open. Smooth riffs, following. Very war-like song structure. Once again, the shouts return. Lots of percussive emphasis, here; well matched by the vocal timing. It does need clearer lyrics, as before, but the exuberant enthusiasm’s commendable. Pointed delivery. A little repetitive, but certainly a passionate performance.

Overall – Undeniably exuberant, with plenty of volume, ‘FS’ conveys its enthusiasm, well. The main issues, however, are the lack of lyrical clarity in the vocals, which given the themes, need much more narrative emphasis, if anything’s to be learned, re: their historical origins and the overuse of shouted vocals, which again, require significantly more melody, for accessibility. Otherwise, just some greater focus on additional verses and structural variety would solidify the album.

7/10 ******* Jenny Tate

Release Date: 17th March 2023

FFO: Kreator, Slayer, Amon Amarth

Location: Helsinki - Finlandia

Midjungards borns on 6th November 2006. When the band Hell-Train dissapears, Toni starts to compose music for the new band. For different reasson the band does not plays its first show until October 2011 with the name Viriato in the pub Darkness of Sedavi (Spain). In this concert the band is composed of the members: Toni, Nanda, Panollo and Pascual. After this concert the band the band dissapears for family reassons. From this perios most of the material of From Scandza was composed and recorded with low quality. During many years the band stays in stand by mode improving some compositions and developing the idea of the band in the cold lands of Finland with an eye on warm Spain. Is during this period where the concept of the band is developped further. The concept of the band gets more close to the amazing history of the ancient goths. Toni learn the ancient goth languages and get very deep into their long history to get all the inspiration needed. During the years 2021-2022 dramatic family facts happen and the project that has been encubated for many years has a drastic boost. With the help of the ex-drummer of Parking Fox Paco Muñoz at the drums, Toni goes to Finnvox studios to records the first album of Midjungards: "From Scandza". Meanwhile Toni start to looking member for the band, first tries with members of known finnish band from Hyvinkää (Finland), but finally this idea does not work out. Finally, the Finnish/Mexican guitarrist Israel Real (Bladzam, Dead Loss, Sacrament) joins the band bringing strength and stability to the band. A bit later bass player Tatu Ruotsalainen (Dead Loss) and Timmo Salakka a professional drummer comming from Jazz will join the band and geting it ready for their debut with Thyrfing, Verikalpa and Pahan Ikoni in Tampere and Helsinki.

The band has been also confirmed for some big festivals. And it is ready for the journey. This is the beginning of long time journey that will bring us to an amazing world of music and feeling. A band created from the most deep of the heart.

From Scandza is the album of Midjungards that will be released on 17th March 2023. Midjungards is a band inspired in the magic world of the ancient goths. It brings the magic of the classic world to our days. This album make us travel from the origin of the ancient goths until their last legendary battles and legacy. Get ready for to enter in a magic work full of metal energy!

Follow them on Spotify and add them to your playlists!