Saor brings Scotland to life.
Still led by Andy Marshall (all instruments/vocals, Fuath, ex-Arsaidh, ex-Falloch), the project unveils Amidst the Ruins in 2025, its sixth album, still backed by Season of Mist.
The musician is surrounded by Carlos Vivas (Phoenix Rising, ex-Hiranya) on drums, Ella Zlotos (Ephemeral) on vocals and flutes, as well as Àngela Moya Serrat and Miguel Izquierdo on violins and Samuel C. Ledesma on cello.
The new adventure kicks off with Amidst the Ruins, the eponymous title track, which is quick to revive Black Metal fury while coupling it with airy, exotic Caledonian Folk roots. The track is quite rhythmic, and the dark parts where Andy screams are generally striking, creating a strong contrast with the floating moments bathed in the melodies of folk instruments, but fueling the complementary nature of the two influences thanks to their shared roots. Ella‘s backing vocals also serve to temper the violence before the soaring final, which joins Echoes of the Ancient Land in a more raw and aggressive Old School approach, whether in terms of rhythm, screams or cutting leads. The majestic, soothing moments are still there, but we’re also surprised by the two-voice passages where Ella and Andy join forces on clean vocals, before the heady harmonics appear once again, triggering a new wave of tranquility that will definitely tint the track right to the end. Dissonance invades on the introduction to Glen of Sorrow, followed by haunting riffs adorned with uilleann pipes and a few strikes that temper the dark cloud that suddenly envelops us, but which occasionally gives way to more mysterious but intoxicating moments, and the track passes relatively quickly, leading us to The Sylvan Embrace, featuring English musician Jo Quail. The track is the only one to stay under ten minutes, but it’s also by far the quietest, reminding us almost of ambient Neo Folk tinges, which are instantly broken by Rebirth, which brings both the band’s Old School influences rooted in vivid Black Metal, but also these light, almost playful touches, which once again fuel the contrast with which the musician has fascinated us for over 10 years, adding hypnotic harmonics before a second part focused on airy sounds and choirs, thus bringing the album to a close.
Saor has definitely found a balance between his multiple influences, whether guided by violence and darkness or the Folk elements of his identity. Amidst the Ruins will be remembered as a real link between the first and last albums.
95/100