Helga has awakened.
Created in Sweden, the project featuring Helga Gabriel (vocals), Ryan Fairclough (bass), Cameron Gledhill (guitar), Cai Sumption (guitar) and Sami Javed (drums) has signed to Season of Mist for the release of Wrapped in Mist, its debut album.
The album gets off to a gentle start with Skogen mumlar and its clean vocals, quickly joined by Prog/Post-Metal patterns that house the slightly more modern Folk influences, creating a rousing dance. The energetic rhythm turns into a haunting finale before Burden hypnotizes us with its airy intro followed by heavier but equally catchy elements, which at times become majestic or more soothing. The sound slowly fades out, then returns with Water, which gently bewitches us as it brings in the various instruments, which naturally integrate the track’s progression, sometimes reinforcing it before giving way to If Death Comes Now and its melancholy. The progression is almost imperceptible, making the Shoegaze-influenced second half of the track almost surprisingly dark, just as on Farväl, where cries of despair join tortured dissonant riffs that flare up on the infernal final. The band stays in the dark by unveiling Alive Again, a track with ominous opening notes whose atmosphere confirms itself while blending with slower, addictive accents that make the track intoxicating before Vast and Wild sets a ritualistic mood. The band is sure to add its hazy soaring touch to the Folk instruments, followed by the haunting sound of Som en trumma, which takes us through fairly gentle sounds draped in light saturation before a much more aggressive final. Mountain Song follows, coupling light steamy sounds with a progression of heaviness that is much more present towards the end, before the album comes to a close with Wrapped in Mist, the eponymous track, which combines softness, playful elements and that heavier veil that the band knows how to use to good effect.
Helga is all about balance. Wrapped in Mist is perfectly able to take us on a relaxing Folk/Prog journey, as well as to make us suffocate with its heavy, dark Post-Metal roots. The album is well worth a listen.
80/100