Hetman - Sewn from the Ashes Book

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HETMAN was founded in Ukraine, in 2006. From the beginning, it was intended that the ideology and the concept of classical music built on ethnically - philosophical literature of different nations, but with a greater impact on Ukrainian literature. The third album "Sewn from the ashes of the book" was recorded at the home studio of Oleksii. Mixing and mastering the album was done by Alex Romanchenko (Blacklight Studio), who is known for his work with such bands as KHORS, BALFOR and SECTORIAL. This album has the flavors of Pagan-Influenced Black Metal, Power Metal and Folk Metal, blended into this Ukrainian Cocktail.

“The Seventh Heaven” begins with a bang, the technical guitar seems more like a BLIND GUARDIAN Power Metal Ballard almost, shredding through the opening minute. The Vocals seem very Folk Metal to start, which goes well with the tune, the tempo is high and moves well together. A few Blackened Death Metal low outbursts from Cerberos add an edgy feel to the tune in patches to edge the darkness in deeper. The Folk style takes us further into the song. Harder vocals are apparent now though, bring a rough feel to the song, progressing well. The styles change frequently, not really allowing the song to progress too long without a shock turn here and there.

“How Quite On Earth!… How Quite!…” carries on with the Folk Metal style in the principle of sound. However, the “Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey!” shows the Power Metal influence again. Not what you’d expect to hear from the band, some may like, some may cringe. You be the judge. The gradual melody never takes off to levels you may expect it to, keeping it less Black Metal and staying with Folk. The vocals are not as powerful, but that’s because they’d overpower everything else. The tempo is steady, this is not a bad thing, it keeps ticking over nicely. More of a foot tapper than a head banger.

“Touch The Stones In The Steppe” takes off with a fast stride, rough and darker vocals start the song. It is a welcomed change from others. The pace hits the usual Power/Folk mode, but vocals remain the same, adding a new edgier feel to the song. There is the calm once more, taking his foot off the pedal, retracting to a slower, smoother vocals style, but this is the calm before the storm. The vocals turn dark again, the solo goes through the tempo, taking us further down the rabbit hole. Control is oozing from Cerberos as raw power is unleashed in surges on the mic for the rest of this track.

“The Proud Word” is put together with the Pagan Black Metal darkened Vocals, which have been in effect throughout this album, but more in the latter half of the album. It has a harder hitting beat to it. This will get the heads nodding. The vocals are deep, clear and full. Not the short outbursts but really extending his skills in the longer stints. The tune is dirty; it’s got the Black Metal feel to it. A few Folk sections come in to play, but are short before the heavy guitar and smashing drums kick back in. Its powerful, its darkness.  The tempo remains upbeat and keeps you wanting it to go on more.

For fans of: Enslaved; Bathory; Primordial; Blind Guardian

Songwriting: 6
Originality: 6
Memorability: 5
Production: 6