Путь - Песни Смерти

 

Who knew that accordion would be so good in black metal?

Путь, translated to Path or Pathway in English, is a Russian black metal band. Earlier, I reviewed another Russian band called Молчат Дома (check out my review of Молчат Дома - Этажи here) and, I'm not sure if it's a quality of all Russian music or just these two bands but, they both have this distant, detached feeling in their music that can only be described as "cold".

This "coldness" can be easily felt on the album's first track "Эпитафия" or "Epitaph". The song starts with a slow plucked guitar melody, reminiscent of Молчат Дома. It slowly builds up till it suddenly stops and an overwhelming wall of guitars and drums sweeps in. The blast-beat is somewhat faded into the background, to give the song a smoother, more sullen sound, and cascades of toms are played in the foreground, resulting in this exciting, and almost mystical sound. In the last 20 seconds, the song breaks down into droney guitar strums. This song creates an overwhelming tone of forlornness that continues for the entire album.

My favorite song on the album is "Так пела метель" or "As the blizzard sang". This is the first song on the album to feature accordion, which is a prominent sound on the album. The accordion works surprisingly well with the black metal sound. Since accordions are extremely rare in metal music, the sound of the instrument is jarring and almost alien sounding when contrasted with the loud blast beats and distorted guitars. Its strained, hollow sound is reminiscent of the moans of a lost soul who died in the freezing Russian winter. This accordion sound, along a with flawless vocal delivery and an awesome melody make listing to this song a very memorable experience.

The next song on the album, "Кости первых" or "Bones of the first ones" is another really good song.

Hello! it's 5 months later, and I'm back! Got a job now, so I'll probably continue to not post constantly, but I might post something every once in a while. I might start doing "track reviews" on a linked page. These wont be as long, but I'll be able to make them faster and I'll be able to cover more bands and music. Anyway, back to the review!

This song starts with the sound of cold wind and someone walking through snow. Soon a haunting plucked guitar starts playing. The strange hollow sound of the accordion and a woman's mournful singing soon follows (unfortunately, I couldn't find the singer's name).  This soft, delicate melody does well to contrast, as well as bolster, the massive, glacial wave of black metal melody that follows it. The main melody of this song is much slower than the previous songs, and has much more fuzzy/ shoegazey guitars. Halfway through, there is a really great breakdown with a accordion/drum duet. The breakdown feels almost like the eye of the storm, with the angry guitar and drum winds circling around the calm. 

Suddenly, we're back in the storm, with the guitars beating and the singer whaling more frantically than ever, only taking a short break for a short bass solo that fits into the song so well, that you almost miss it. As the song ends, the background accordion melody is brought to the front, almost as a last bow before the end of the song.

Overall, this is a very good album that has it's own unique twist on black metal. I wish I could of given an analysis of the lyrics, but unfortunately I couldn't find a translation. That being said, throughout the album, the vocals act as an additional instrument, removing the need to understand them. I highly recommend this album to any Black Metal fan (especially if you like bands such as Emperor or Immortal). This is also a pretty good album for anyone looking for an entry point into the genre; it still has the harsh black metal sound, but presents it in a more digestible  package.

Rating: 8/10

Favorite Tracks: Эпитафия, Так пела метель, Кости первых

Listen to Путь - Песни Смерти on Bandcamp!