The Swan Road is now the third album that Season of Mist is re-issuing. Drudkh agreed to bring back to life their back catalog following the new contribution with the French label.
The Ukrainian act went for a rawer edge on this album. It is, nonetheless, still pleasant and melodic for the ears. The pace remains mostly in the moderate range, which is greatly appreciated. This music is in your face and the distorted guitar is leading the show here. I think we can call this music melodic/barbarian folk/Viking metal , to sum up the overall vibe of this disc. The raspy vocals are quite savage, which matches pretty well the rawer guitar tones. Calmer parts with bits of acoustic electric guitars could be heard in a few occasions. Some melancholic leads are also present here and there, varying the emotional level. Not bad, not great, but just a good folk/Viking opus to pop in once and a while in your player. There are a couple tracks that are standing out: "Eternal Sun" and "Blood". The closing composition, "Song of Sich Destruction", is purely a folksy tune made of traditional singing and string instrument, besides being a nice farewell too.
Track listing:
1- 1648
2- Eternal Sun
3- Blood
4- Glare of 1768
5- The Price of Freedom
6- Fate
7- Song of Sich Destruction