Dwarrowdelf – The Sons of Fëanor

Band: Dwarrowdelf
Album: The Sons of Fëanor
Release Date: 30th April 2018
Label: Unsigned

Dwarrowdelf is a solo epic/atmospheric black metal project which bases its lyrical themes on Tolkein’s world of Middle Earth. Reading into the lore a little more, I found that Dwarrowdelf is the translated name of Khazad-Dûm, or Moria.  Each track on this record relates to each of the sons of Fëanor, as the album name suggests. This is the first full-length release by Dwarrowdelf. Each track on this album is an epic, the shortest track being 6:36 while the longest is 11:12.

Much of the album is more atmopsheric than metal, and the instrumentals are simplistic, but this fits with the style and tone of the album. It is what you would expect from a Tolkein inspired album. There are repeated themes in the composition, there are often calming periods of string, piano, brass or flute melodies, and there are lots of male choral vocals which are synonymous with dwarven chanting.

Armod introduces us to the album and sets the tone. It is a very calming start, with piano and drum, and then some epic, long guitar chords come in. There are a mix of black metal style and clean vocals in this track, and this is repeated throughout the album. There is a seamless transition from Amrod into Curufin, with a brass melody accompanied by drums. We get some faster tempos in this track and we start to hear some true black metal style instrumentals. It is also the first time we hear the male choral vocals.

Celegorm is the first track to be heavy on the black metal influence. There are clean vocals in this track, but the full black metal sound is there with the distored guitars and fast drums. The track, however, does begin and end with a stripped down melody with a guitar accompaniment. Caranthir is the longest track, starting once again with strings and drums. We have several calming sections amongst the heavier black metal style, and they include brass, flutes, choral vocals and strings.

Amras straight away kicks in with full black metal instrumentals and then vocals. There are slower paced sections to the track with symphonic and choral elements. Maedhras starts in a similar style to Amras, but there is a little bit more of an upbeat feel to the melody. There are one again alternating calm and heavier sections, with clean vocals being a little more prevalent in this track. The albums ends with Maglor,  beginning with a slow and epic guitar solo, before black metal vocals and instrumental kicks in. There is a few moments of silence part-way through, and then piano and flutes slowly come in. There is definitely a magical and mystical feel to this track. The strong black metal instrumental comes back in, and the track ends by fading to nothing.

Normally, I’m not a particularly big fan of black metal. To me it normally sounds like a lot of jumbled noise to sound as kvlt as possible. However, this is album is a great balance between more traditional black metal, and symphonic, atmospheric and folky elements that I enjoy in other genres of metal. It has got me interested again in the lore of Middle Earth, and when I next have the opportunity I will be picking up my copy of The Silmarillion and reading it properly for the first time. As a one-man project this is amazing, and I hope we hear more from Dwarrowdelf in the future.

Verdict: 8/10

Buy The Sons of Fëanor: https://dwarrowdelfuk.bandcamp.com/album/the-sons-of-f-anor
Follow Dwarrowdelf on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DwarrowdelfUK/