THE COURSE OF EMPIRE

A series of 5 paintings by Thomas Cole in the 19th century is entitled "The Course of Empire" and depicts rather presciently how humanity corrupts the pure course of nature, though I suppose that by this time our power to destroy was well established over centuries. While this is certainly a fitting subject for a neo folk album, binding these to the near impenetrable Hermetic principles seems a stretch, which is seemingly what Jesse Heikkinen is attempting on this second ITERUM NATA release. Sure, both empires and individuals experience life and death, which are more of a loop than a one way or out and back trail so....I guess that kinda works, right?

As usual for Heikkinen, this is a solid dark folk effort, though perhaps not quite as consistent as the debut or as focused as the ones that followed. Still, lively numbers like "The Principal of Rhythm" with its fitting bottom end and vintage sounding synths, and "Invocation", like old school DEAD CAN DANCE, lead the way, and the closing instrumental is dense and hearty. "Sacrificial Light" sounds like it is graced by a guest female vocalist but no such credit is offered. "Solve and Coagula" inserts a lively medieval instrumental passage of the type that ITERUM NATA has not seen to emulate before or since. I want to just say it's out of place but honestly I would like these type of interludes even if they are squeezed out of a fissure in a death metal incantation.

I wouldn't start here with your exploration of this project but I wouldn't avoid either. It would seem that the subsequent involvement with HEXVESSEL was fortuitous for Heikkinen in transitioning to a more pastoral empirical phase.