I have got really into Arkona and their back catalogue of late and been bewitched by their brand of pagan and folkloric Russian music. Apparently they have a new album coming some time around the summer of this year and this is a stopgap mini CD to appease those of us waiting for it. This is quite a versatile disc and contains six tracks running 25 minutes. Included are one album number and five that are exclusive to this release. The title ‘Stenka na Stenku’ apparently means ‘Wall To Wall’ and is a Slavic fighting style apparently where they created contests where two sides form walls and basically bundle into each other. I have even found a video showing this online (linked below) and it looks like a lot of fun as well as no doubt somewhat dangerous when the sides crunch into each other on the ice.
This explains the cover art no doubt and is put in a musical context as the accordion of the title track has the two sides facing off suddenly to burst into life and collide in the middle as all the participants pile into each other. It’s one hell of an infectious song with pipe and Masha The Scream’s vocals urging it on, there’s even one of those what I call ‘frog choruses’ as per everyone from Paul McCartney to Turisas and it’s a fantastically boisterous opening number. Arkona keep the velocity going at frenzy point for ‘Valenki’ before it downs tools and goes into evocative torch-song sounding freedom fighting anthem vocally and then bouncing back so fast it’s like a manic Cossack dance. If the new album has tracks like this on it it’s going to be a mad one and I cannot see anyone staying upright to them live.
We need to slow it down a bit and this is handled by an acoustic version of ‘Goi Ride Goi.’ The vocals are gorgeous here and you are steeped into atmospheric winter-lands by the evocative flow of the music, which sounds like it has put very traditional elements to flirt with the more metalized feel of the original. Skål sounds like it must be a traditional song too and once its chorus gets in your head there is no getting it out. With vocal rasps added by Freki of Varg it’s another infectious number which even at 2 ½ minutes is one that won’t be forgotten in a hurry. Finally we have two covers but probably not ones you know. ‘Duren’ originally by Svarga is full of pipes and enchanting, harmonic vocals. Finding the original you can hear that despite changing male vocals to female, Arkona have kept the song very true to form, although adding blast beats may never have been an element anticipated by the songs originators. ‘Noviy Mir’ - ‘Odda mailbmi’ was originally done by Shaman who those studying metal folklore 101 will remember are now known as Korpiklaani. This also works very well and is the complete opposite of the start of the disc bringing it to a gentler closure.
What’s left to say? This is a totally enjoyable stop-gap that should have any Arkona fan frothing at the bit for the new album, now wonder if they will tour and get a wall to wall going in the pit?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbYFKq1SyJ0&feature=related
http://www.arkona-russia.com
Pete Woods
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