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Fen - Winter CD (album) cover

WINTER

Fen

Experimental/Post Metal

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kev rowland
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR
Honorary Reviewer
5 stars Formed in early 2006 with the goal of producing Atmospheric Black Metal that incorporates elements of post-rock, Fen have, since then, found themselves at the vanguard of a resurgent UK Black Metal scene. With an EP, four full length albums, several splits and compilations to their name so far, this their latest full-length album (released March 2017) is their most ambitious to date, as they have combined Black metal with many other styles to create something that is very special indeed. Conceptually, they have returned to the roots of their ideology, seeking to embrace and distil all that inspired them when they first set out on this path over a decade ago ? that is, to invoke the ambience of bleak reflection and ancient sorrow that permeates the mysterious landscapes of the fens of Eastern England.

According to singer/guitarist The Watcher this album "very much describes a journey towards sanctity and redemption across a landscape steeped in mystery, hints of forgotten darkness and sorrows long since drowned in the distant past." There are six songs, but the only real way to play this album is to put it on at the beginning and be prepared for seventy-five minutes of music that will take you well away from the comfortable world you reside in, to a place that is far more barren and bleak, filled with foggy atmosphere and danger. How just three guys (The Watcher is joined by Havenless on drums and Grungyn on bass and vocals) can produce something as majestic and over the top of as this is just beyond me. It shows that although the Scandinavian countries seemed to have very much a stranglehold on this type of music for a long time, that is no longer the case. Fen have been going for ten years now, and they are just maturing and getting even better with age. The record label describes this as "atmospheric Black Metal and delicate, spacious cleans, married with aspects of 70s progressive rock, shoegaze and doom metal". I can make it much simpler than that. This is genius, nothing less.

Report this review (#1694024)
Posted Saturday, February 18, 2017 | Review Permalink
Warthur
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars I hadn't found Fen's second album, Epoch, to be much of a keeper, feeling like it was riding along on the blackgaze bandwagon without really contributing much of its own. On hearing this latest release of theirs I'm a bit more taken by the sound; perhaps they've improved and matured in terms of their overall atmospheric black metal mastery, or perhaps it's that the album shows a bit more original ambition this time. Constructed of one continuous multi-part suite, it takes the listener as promised on a journey through chilly landscapes - and whilst winter-themed black metal isn't something there's a shortage of, Fen's baroque, intricate take on it is interesting, though I find that as with much blackgaze stuff it rather all starts blending together after a while.
Report this review (#1728689)
Posted Wednesday, May 31, 2017 | Review Permalink

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