Outlined in backward trailing smoke and stippled with the flames of distant torchlight their fortress settles in its valley as grim and gray as a mountain among mountains, fuming in the distance as we pan into the painstakingly lit scenery afforded by England-based ‘epic’ atmospheric black metal project FELLWARDEN whose latest opus introduces the rugged sword-and-buckler level fantasy backdrop which now replaces their contemplative naturalist vision. Writ in direct tribute to the fantasy literature of author David Gemmell, this third and latest release from the band is a chance for a strike at the iron-aged epic heavy metal side of things which yet presents their own voluminous yet rabid black metal press. In this way ‘Legend: Forged in Defiance‘ is an extension of their past work which meets up squarely with a freshly ambitious goal, presenting a notable shift in tone while remaining uncompromised, which is clearly inspired at the chance to depict this realm.

Fellwarden formed circa 2014 as a solo project from The Watcher aka Frank Allain, who is best known for is work in black metal group Fen, as a container for an exceedingly “epic” version of atmospheric black metal. The tone of their work has been consistently mournful, dramatic and folken to some intense degree, though I’d suggest nostalgia now becomes an additional component of their vision on some level. A largely solo project from a well-known musician they’d been able to secure a deal with a fully-formed and fleshed debut album (‘Oathbearer‘, 2017) within a couple of years, presenting a patiently glowing form of atmospheric black metal with layers of keyboards and folken epics referencing bands like Drudkh and Wolves in the Throne Room as much as it did the general 90’s zeitgeist. Though it’d appeared vaguely “Cascadian” in spirit for the lack of a better comparison the major criticism I have for that starting point was its unsure, tentative step taken into the realm of tunefulness. The hesitance and the frothy production sound was yet above average in generating its overall atmosphere as a sensation of a fog-riddled ancient place of mourning was depicted. Most of the main traits expressed on that first album survive today though the process has been additive with each new release.

I’d written about Fellwarden‘s second album (‘Wreathed in Mourncloud‘, 2020) at length upon release, suggesting a now emboldened clean vocal and a general uptick in layered performances allowed a choral presence to direct most scenes. At the time I think I’d summed the evolution best here: “this second album has a bit more of a Falkenbach-esque spirit to its harmonized vocal work and folkish rumblings, cloud-like in motion and yet inherently black metal in statement.” And despite the strides made with a more pronounced narrator and a doubly voluminous sound it wasn’t always a connective album, instead opting to embody a wandering spirit. This is hardly a flaw from my point of view but in practical terms it’d meant there was still a hidden dagger in pocket, a catchier more performative side to Fellwarden‘s cadence which’d arisen from beneath its shroud more often that second time around. With only the first album as reference the second revealed more in confidence, had a certain intimacy in its post-music highs (see: the peak of “An Elder Reckoning”) which’d felt like progress toward a larger goal. At the same time the “heavy metal” spirit of the band had likewise begun to shine through and thankfully this evolution intensifies on this new record.

For album number three the shroud drops a bit more but only as much as is necessary to craft a more verbose level of narration to suit the themes at hand. The rich atmospheric sound of ‘Wreathed in Mourncloud‘ still lingers heavily in the air but here the change of subject, fantasy author David Gemmell‘s characterizations per his 1984 novel Legend and greater body of work, demands a more connective version of Fellwarden arise to the task of broader-set depiction. Having read the fairly short novel (~220 pages) in question for the sake of a more complete reference and noting that most of its task as the first in a series is world building beyond a number of key characterizations two things stood out to me: First, the examination of the virtues of men and their roles in family and community and second, occasionally poetic bursts of scene in description give an otherwise all-too typical fantasy setting more than a plain grey backdrop. Both of these things are generally emphasized within the work of The Watcher who brings in others who have some deeper appreciation for the Drenai series lore and the tone of the authors writing to help bring Gemell‘s invader-stricken realm into their dramatic voice.

For the first two records the maestro was joined by drummer Havenless, who’d likewise featured on Fen‘s 2019 album, but for this one the rhythm section is chaired by guests in drummer Alasdair Dunn (Ashenspire) and bassist Mark Harrington. Though most of these performances were self-recorded in home studios this doesn’t generally interrupt the atmospheric character of ‘Legend‘ when compared to their previous releases as the guitar and vocal work are still made clear as the main event, the emphasis in terms of their sound design and the sheer number of layers deployed. Still, the necessary heavy metal kick and stamp into opener “Exultance” and the later-on punctuative hits of “Renewed Hope” give plenty enough room for the rhythm section to shine as this now far more varied reach of Fellwarden indulges in a different set of angles, exploring various dramatic moods rather than one continuous stream of glowing mourn. As a result we get six ~9-10 minute songs with each carrying its own extensive chapter, so to speak, showing a sense of progression through their reveal.

Droning on forever. — The aforementioned “Exultance” lays out the general scope of what Fellwarden‘s explored on this album from striding epic heavy metal with hymnal chorales, kicking-fast black metal turns taken, and a post-metallic mid-song break which carries us through the sunset of the piece. “Despair” brings some of the folkish post-black style found on past releases from the band but it is “Renewed Hope” which pushes us through the slow-to-rise ride of the album as it gains momentum, hitting a big riff and pairing it with a sleeker black metal pulse as the song builds up to a point of spoken narrative; Those first three songs tonally merge as a first “half” of the full listen by the time “Desperation” hits as a thunderous, choral-driven piece which bears less of the (recent) Midnight Odyssey-level epic stride they’d been working up to and begins to motion in a more folken, drifting direction. Per my own experience the first three songs were convincing enough and the final three (again) completed the thought in a satisfying if not overstated manner.

In this case perceived excess has the right effect as we further consider the lyrical themes, the ideas rather than solely the events of the novel at its central point of focus, and how well this music matches up with its scope and its ‘epic’ metal presentation. Excess isn’t what’d made this version of Fellwarden their best work yet in my opinion, though, as inspired heavy/black metal riffcraft and the well-improved cadence of their choral vocals become exciting new (or, louder) focal points for the music to expand its register. Otherwise I’m an easy sell when it comes to album artwork from the great Kris Verwimp, who brings us to this realm via a ziggurat castle in alpine mountains, suggesting we’re looking at Dros Delnoch. It’d taken some patience to soak into it, do the reading, and begin to fully admire the artist’s ability to embolden their sound without reducing its existing personae but it only took a few close listens to figure I liked this record even more than the dreamily wandering ‘Wreathed in Mourncloud‘, no longer relishing in the haze hanging over their previous releases. Their work achieves a new sense of direction with this particular theme in hand. A high recommendation.

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