Band:	Galar
Album:	De Gjenlevende
Style:	Melodic black metal, Viking black metal, Folk metal
Release date:	March 16, 2015
A review by:	R'Vannith

01. De Gjenlevende
02. Natt ... Og Taust Et Forglemt Liv
03. Bøkens Hymne
04. Ljós
05. Gjeternes Tunge Steg
06. Tusen Kall Til Solsang Ny

Norway's Galar are melodic black metal first and foremost with their features of Nordic folk giving them their own face in the crowd, a crowd best represented by the likes of Vintersorg or Borknagar in their early days. De gjenlevende, the band's third album, takes its time in laying down its melodies, and nothing is short and sweet in these tunes epic and wintry.

The approach that Galar take is one to be likened to the pagans in Kampfar or Vikings in Windir for the longevity of each of the record's six tracks, though Galar extend things even further. "Ljós" is an exception, as it stands as a three-and-a-half minute folk interlude clutched amongst all the other numbers which well exceed the seven minute mark on average. Many a moment is taken to building up the epic vibe and driving delivery, with tempo change kicking track progression into higher gear or switching down to more contemplative passages defined by acoustic, keys, strings and folk instrumentation establishing sombre mood and atmosphere. "Bøkens hymne" opens with the noticeable presence of brass, the integration of a horn quartet in accompaniment setting a distinctive rhythmic march within the record, before returning to the up-tempo black metal flow. Following on from this is the aforementioned "Ljós," an instrumental piece darkened by bassoon timbre with an absence of drums and guitars.

For the most part, De gjenlevende is driven at an undeterred pace characterised by active and blasting percussion about elongated melodic guitar lines that unfold at a generally mid-to-high tempo. The harsh vocal arrangements are comparable to Kampfar and the cleans are in a Borknagar vein in their Norwegian tongue and lyricism. The lengthy compositions do lessen in engagement at points, the melodies being stretched out to their very limits in repetition and sometimes losing their lustre with the delivery and rhythm becoming fixed where less variation is introduced. However, the scope of the songs is ambitious and ultimately impressive and rewarding in culmination, as Galar demonstrate their ability to make their compositions continually listenable throughout with plentiful ideas and instrumental and vocal additions.

The production and mixing here is handled by Bjørnar Nilsen of Vulture Industries, who astutely allows a nicely audible bass some breathing space in the mix, as is evident in the likes of the closer "Tusen kall til solsang ny." Suitably for black metal of this nature, the overall production isn't overly polished so as to remove the record's rough edge best found in the prominently placed percussion and centralised guitar tones, both being the driving constituents which form much of this very wholesome album. When used, the folk instrumentation also finds sufficient presence to enhance and characterise the sound.

De gjenlevende amounts to a complete representation of what Galar have to offer in folk personalised melodic black metal, and is an accomplished record indeed.