Arkona- Yav Review

Band- Arkona
Album- Yav
Label- Napalm Records (Austria)
Origin- Moscow, Russia
Score- 2.5/5

Excessive is a word you seldom hear thrown around in Metal a lot. In a type of music where the right kind of excessive attributes is basically the foundation of the whole sub-genre, it is very hard to have things be seen as too much. Metal is basically the “too heavy,” “too loud,” and “too technical,” version of Hard Rock, so in a way, “excessive” runs in our blood. But, the beauty of very well done Metal releases is that the excessive doesn't feel excessive. That the music is actually very utilitarian, it just utilizes a lot more than other conventional types of music. Takes for example a band such as Enslaved. Two vocal types, 6 different instruments, and not even discussing the different sound effects, yet you wouldn't ever think that certain things could be done away with. Albums that could last 70 minutes and more yet not a minute of those are wasted. But sometimes, such is not the result. The albums look to amaze, look to be bombastic, and it all comes through as “meh, almost.” It sucks to see someone being really excited, and totally into what they're doing, when you just don't feel drawn in at all. That's my gripe with Arkona's Yav (which is named after the material world in Slavonic mythology.)

Being one of my favorite groups of the whole Folk Metal trend, the Masha Scream led group seem to have hit a rut. While Yav is by no means a horrible album, and actually has moments where it seems to take Arkona in new directions, it just doesn't have the elegance and finesse that earlier works such as Слово (Slovo, word) and Гой, Роде, Гой! (Goi, Rode, Goi!, Hail Rod Hail!, Rod is the god of childbirth and life) had. While the album is all the more bombastic, and tries its hardest to be orchestral, it simply isn't. The many flirtations with progressive Metal riffing evident through the earlier tracks in particular just take you out of the epic feeling all together. While the opening track, Зарождение (Zarozhdenie, generation) is one of the strongest tracks on the album, both it and following track На страже новых леt (na strazhe novih let) throw a few what-the-fuck curve balls that really don't add anything to the music.While they both host some of Masha's best vocal preformences on the album (and some of the best in her career,) and parts which are genuinely touching, they are followed by riffs and meaningless parts which take you out of it. Like you have these very powerful classic Pagan Metal riffs that Sergei Lazarov is known for, followed by Opeth style prog beep boop bullshit that does nothing but subtract. Which touches again on my main issue with the album. If you could dissect the riffs and take out the ones that add nothing, and just keep the others, this album would be fucking great. It really had the potential to be one of the best Arkona albums.


The first two tracks are followed by” tear jerker,” Сербиа (Serbia.) I write “tear jerker” in parenthesis as it just sounds so forced and pathetic, that it reminds me of Eurovision songs. It's just a boring, slow track, that doesn't do the place the respect it deserves. I guess what they tried to do is pull out a track like Славься, Русь! (Slavsia, Rus!, Hail Rus!) From the От Сердца к Небу (Ot Cerduchak Nebu, From the heart to the sky) but it doesn't sound nearly as epic (or frankly, as devilishly catchy.) Luckly, the album picks up pace with the fourth track Зов пустых деревень (zov pustih derevn, call of empty villages) which is one of the tightest tracks on the album. Here, Masha's new and improved vocals finally play nice with the music and combine together to show the mighty which Arkona fans have been banking on. Great Black Metal riffery followed by those grandiose parts which the band does so well. See? When they can do it organically, I don't get why they have to try and manufacture it industrially.
Yet from the ascension, the band dives into a bit of mediocrity again with Город снов (gorod slov, city of dreams.) While the song doesn't have you full on what the fucking, and does have the parts of shining through, it feels a bit unrealized. It doesn't have parts where you're really like “fuck yeah!' such as the first two songs or the previous track, but it doesn't have parts where you're full on “seriously?!” like those tracks as well. It feels a bit safe, and a bit redundant. Though, it seems they haven't dived too far, as they rise right back, for the two songs following are my two favorite tracks on the album. Thomas Väänänen (ex Thyrfing) guests on the 7^th track Ведьма (vedma, witch) and it comes out as a bomb. Masha and Thomas compliment each other very nicely, and like on the other good tracks on this album, the band comes together very nicely. No samples, no exaggerations,no extras just plain ol' Slavonic Paganism seems to do the job much better than all the tricks and whistles. Чадо индиго (chado indigo, indigo child) , the following track, also keeps on that minimalist track that serviced the last song so well. For good reason, as a complete song, it is probably the best track on the album. Easy to listen to, no boredom, and musical parts that range from the gut wrenchingly awesome heavy to a wonderful and very well done piano part compliments of Ukrainian pianist, Vika “ Vkgoeswild” Yermolyeva. Followed the smooth opening by the aforementioned Vika, the band kicks into a riff that really reminds me more of Death Metal than it does of the Melodic Black/Pagan their known for, but it actually fits in nicely.
Yet, the ugly beast rears it's head again on the title track, Явь (Yav.) A 13 minute track that, to put it nicely, is less than the sum of its parts. Rather than write a 4 minute song that conveys the idea nicely, Arkona seemed to look more on the clock here than listen to their music. Just, ugh. Listening to this song from beginning to end is hard. I love Arkona, I really do, but the amount of times I found myself pausing, looking away, or simply moving to different music at this part before I could go through this album in one listening is abysmal. I'm all for the band trying new stuff, and they do have a place in my heart, but this “Arkona Gone Prog” doesn't work for them. Sadly, the last track doesn't really leave you with a nice taste in the mouth either. Closer В обьятьях крамолы (V Obyatyah kramol, in the open arms of sedition) is just boring. Flat out fucking boring. While the title track was bad just for how long it was, and could've still been salvaged for a mediocre track, this song is just below par and uninteresting in anyway. Masha's vocals don't come into any major play, and the rest of the ensemble just sounds tired. I honestly would've had more respect for this piece if they just closed the album with Yav and declared it a bonus track. It doesn't deserve a spot on the new album, clear cut.

Overall? The album is just overtly mediocre. It has great parts, it has horrible parts, but all together the package is not worth your top dollar. It has parts which are wonderful, that I’d honestly recommend spending the money on iTunes (or if we're being honest, pirating it)on, and ignore the rest. Because honestly, a lot of this album is filler.