Band:	Hantaoma
Album:	Malombra
Style:	Folk metal
Release date:	May 2005
A review by:	Jeff

01. Vent Follet
02. Malombra
03. Hantaoma
04. Maluros
05. La Ronda Dels Mòrts
06. Para Lo Lop
07. Cançon Dels Segaires
08. Negra Sason
09. A La Montanha
10. Flama

This review is really special for me because Hantaoma comes from my lands in the South of France. Near Spain and above all near of the Pyrenees (our mountains) this land is a land of nature and legends. The band plays nice Folk Metal with a really "weird" particularity. For all those who don't know this part of our country, they sing in "Occitan", an old language that was spoken by a lot of people in the South of France before it was forbidden at the beginning of the 20th century? However, this mix of French and Spanish (this is really reductive and I'm sorry for that but the ones who aren't really familiar with the language will at least understand, a bit, how it can sound) is not dead yet, like the culture and the legends that were so popular in the past. With Stille Volk and now Hantaoma, Patrick Lafforgue and Patrice Roques give to this beautiful language like to the Pyrenean pantheon and its legends a new life, thank a lot guys?

All those who know Stille Volk will be surprised with the first album of this new project because Hantaoma is a "real" Metal band? that's not so surprising when you know that we're in front of some real Metalheads. Musically, "Malombra" is really heavy with a lot of excellent Powerful guitar riffs in the vein of Finntroll for example. But this is more than original because I'm quite sure that only a few people know the sonorities of our Folk Music. The band uses a lot of Folk instruments, from bagpipes (yeah yeah we have our own bagpipes here ) to flute (bignou), etc. At the end the music of "Malombra" even if it can be really heavy sometime it is on the other side really dancing and lively.

The lyrics are all in "Occitan" so it will be probably a bit hard for a lot of you to understand their meanings, but you must know that the texts talk about the Pyrenees and its legends (Witches, wolfs and Pyreneans gods for example?). The voice of Patrick can be clean but in general we're nearer to Black Metal and it gives an interesting dark spirit to the music. Here again this is really original and more than well done. You cannot imagine how good it is to listen to music that uses an old language of part of your country and talk about myths and legends that are so beautiful but unfortunately largely forgotten.

My only regret with the album actually comes from the recording. It is ok but sometime the sound is a bit too saturated. Don't worry though, there are a lot of variations (we even have a ballad on the album) in the music of Hantaoma, with aggressive parts like pure Folk clean passages and the album doesn't suffer too much from this little problem. The more I listen to it, the more I love it?

There is no need to always look at the Nordic legends to find interesting and amazing stories. Here in the south of France we can also find some beautiful myths and Hantaoma proves that we can play and sing Folk Metal without any words about Odin and Thor and above all without any words in English. "Malombra" is beautiful and for now, in my opinion, we're in front of one of the best releases of the year (evidently I suppose that I don't need to add that this album is also the best Folk release of the year so far?). This album is a must, it is new and fresh and our guys are really talented. This is a must my friends, don't miss it please and believe me, we will hear a lot about Hantaoma?

"Brèisha, brèisha, cabessal,
Si tornas deman te donarai fuoc e sal?"