AUTUMN AURORA

Drudkh's first album, despite being quite enjoyable, was too repetitive and tends to bore me if I'm not in the right mood. "Autumn Aurora" is repetitive too, but this time they know where to stop. There's enough variety here to keep the listener paying attention through the whole album. This time they have added some keyboards, a very good addition to their sound if you ask me. They are not present all the time, in fact they are little used, never seem out of place and it helps to develop the atmosphere.

The album is rather short, and when the music is as good as this case, it's double short. The drums are another thing that needs to be mentioned. You will hear no better drumming in Black Metal as in this album. The harsh vocals are quite few, and are very low in the mix. The production in general is raw, but every instrument (except the bass) can be easily recognized.

Since the acoustic "Fading", to the upbeat "Sunwheel" (perhaps my favourite song on the album) and the droning "The First Snow" (Agalloch would come 2 years later with "Our Fortress Is Burning... III - The Grain" as an album closer with the same drone style), this album is a gem within the Atmospheric Black/Folk Metal and should not be missed by those who enjoy the most extreme branches of music.

Final Score: 4,8 rounded to 5. Best Tracks: "Sunwheel", "Wind of the Night Forests" and "The First Snow".