Saltatio Mortis - Aus Der Asche

February 21, 2009

Reviewer: Peter

Long before the recent spike in the number of jolly folk metal bands, there were just a small handful of bands that fit that bill.  One of those bands is Germany’s Saltatio Mortis, a band that lives by the motto, “Those who dance don’t die.”  Ever since their 2002 debut Das Zweite Gesicht, they have lived up to that motto.  However, one could make the argument that their folk sound is largely aided by synthetic means.  In other words, there’s more than just bagpipes in play when listening to their albums.  For their latest album Aus Der Asche however, they rely less on those elements and the result is a good album that also sees much improvement from the band, at least when it comes to progression.  Everything else remains the same, which is good for longtime followers of the band.

As with their previous releases, Saltatio Mortis lives up to their motto, “Those who dance don’t die.”  Aus Der Asche continues the mantra with music that is just as danceable as on their previous releases.  This time around though, the band’s fifth release takes on a much more pure folk sound than before, although bagpipes are still a very large part of the folk element here.  The opening track “Prometheus” is a fairly straightforward song that pays homage to the mythological Greek fire bringer of the same name.  The second track “Spielmannsschwur” establishes the band’s intent towards making a more natural sounding album with an acoustic guitar being added alongside bagpipes.  It isn’t until “Uns Gehört die Welt” that the overall speed picks up.  The medieval punk style in which the song is played is evident in the guitar/bagpipe solo trade-off and really adds some character to the band’s sound that wouldn’t have surfaced under the old artificial effects that Saltatio Mortis had used on their other albums.  “Sieben Raben” is mostly a slow song and is standard fare for the band.  “Varulfen” and “Choix des Dames” are Swedish and French traditional songs, respectively, and are good songs for the band to make into their own, which they do well.  Except for “Irgendwo in meinem Geiste” and the closing track “Nichts Bleibt Mehr,” the last two-thirds of Aus Der Asche is faster paced, a sign that the band has grown more confident in its abilities.  That is not to say that Saltatio Mortis isn’t good at the ballads, as the previously mentioned “Nichts Bleibt Mehr” shows.  Slow, but not too somber, it showcases what the band can do even without its trademark bagpipes, as much of the song is driven by the acoustic guitar.  As for negatives on the album, there really isn’t much, as the artificial elements that were on the previous albums are hardly there, if at all. 

Overall, Saltatio Mortis lives up to their mantra and Aus der Asche is just a fun album that will only encourage dancing.  Longtime fans will find much to like about this album while newcomers will want to find the band’s other albums.  Easily the band’s best overall album, which is saying a lot, considering that they were already one of Germany’s best folk metal bands alongside In Extremo, Corvus Corvax, and Subway to Sally. 

Release Date: August 31st, 2007
Label: Audioglobe/Napalm
Records

TRACK LISTING

1. Prometheus
2. Spielmannsschwur
3. Uns Gehört die Welt
4. Sieben Raben
5. Varulfen
6. Irgendwo in meinem
    Geiste
7. Koma
8. Wirf den ersten Stein
9. Tod und Teufel
10. Choix des Dames
11. Worte
12. Kelch des Lebens
13. Nichts Bleibt Mehr

Total playing time: 53:52

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