ULKAN NEWEN — La Fuerza Del Canto (review)

ULKAN NEWEN — La Fuerza Del Canto album cover

Album · 2015 · Folk Metal

3.5/5 · 2024-09-05
siLLy puPPy

ULKAN NEWEN is a Chilean folk metal band that got its start in the small town of Curarrehue which is situated near the Villarica volcano from which the band derives its name only from the indigenous Mapudungun language translation of the volcano. The band formed in 2008 and after going through many lineup changes relocated to the larger city of Temuco. The band describes its music as “Global Folk Metal” which incorporates folk music not necessarily indigenous to South America but literally adopts folk musical ideas from all over the globe and mixes them with heavy metal music.

The band has found a bit of success and popularity for its unusual approach and has appeared at international festivals such as the PaganFest II where they played with better known bands like Eluveitie and others. So far the band has released only a single album titled LA FUERZA DEL CANTO which translates into “The Force Of Song.” The album is fairly short as far as folk metal albums are concerned with many in the genre sprawling over an hour’s playing time. LA FUERZA DEL CANO features only six tracks that add up to 35 1/2 minutes of playing time. Without a label the band so far has only released its album independently.

The band really does incorporate a lot of various folk styles into its mix ranging from traditional Latin folk flavors to Irish jigs and gypsy swing. The band features two guitarists, a bassist, drummer, keyboardist, violinist and flute player. While folk metal can range from the primarily black metal dominated sounds of Moonsorrow infused with folk flavors to bands that are more folk music oriented than metal, ULKAN NEWEN adds more emphasis to the global folk side of the equation with the metal only serving as a somewhat secondary element usually in the form of hefty guitar riffing and the occasional growly vocals otherwise the band is more like a speed folk type of act.

I can see why this gets overall negative reviews as it does come off as a little cheesy. It’s very melodic and the symphonic keyboards and violins add more non-metal elements than the guitar, bass and drums can often overpower however a few tracks like “Invoca El Poder” adopt a virtuosic Symphony X type of approach with crazy keyboard soloing and neoclassical guitar sweeps along with galloping guitar riffs and fast tempos. The band is just as likely to escape metal altogether and engage in a festive folk dance style that makes you feel like you’ve entered a fiddling contest where the Irish jigs are in competition with the gypsy swing and Latin American influences.

It’s a very instantly endearing album if you like highly melodic folk-infused hooks with lots of violin and flute. While the metal is not as prevalent as many would like, the band certainly has the chops to deliver the goods when the metal is unleashed into a furious uproar but on the non-metal segments the band sounds like a typical global fusion type of band which is a style of music i actually love a lot so this is actually a type of music that appeals to me. I’m personally OK with not thinking of this as a metal band per se and that it’s a band that simply incorporates metal into a larger recipe. The most impressive track on the album is the closing “Bagual” which delivers beautiful folk music and adds enough metal to make it a very interesting track especially with all the twists and turns.

Overall the band does a fairly decent job of mixing metal with the varying folk styles and although i do wish the metal was a more important ingredient to this folk-infused potpourri, i can’t say i’m displeased with the results of what’s presented. A very nice album even if not reaching any kind of classic status. Given the large amount of instrumentation i have to say that the production and mixing is actually pretty decent considering this is an indie band. The band has a very professional looking website and knows how to promote itself. For emerging from such a remote area and having only a limited exposure to the world market, ULKAN NEWEN delivered a fairly impressive debut. The question is though will a new album ever come to light? The potential for becoming a world class band is definitely there.