Ember Belladonna: The Grove

I’ve never really gotten too into folk metal. It’s not that I don ‘t like it, it’s just I’ve been too preoccupied with so many other subgenres that folk metal never makes an inroad. Most of the folk that inserts itself into my own metal tastes is to colour other genres: power metal, death metal, prog metal, you get the idea. There is plenty of folksy stuff there, bands like Ensiferium and Wintersun, Turisas, Tyr, Eluveitie and the like. So, what was I to do when this odd but intriguing Ember Belladonna came across my desk?

“Come with me, love into the forest where the road most traveled is far behind us.”

Well, let’s get a few things straight. This is hardly folk metal. It only has a tiny bit of metal across it’s meager 27 minutes, and leans heavily into the folk element. And when I say folk, what I really mean is flute. Ember Belladonna is the project of Emma Kramer-Rodger, a classically trained flautist from Saskatchewan, Canada. Having exercised her talents for several films and video games, she now is making a foray into the world of metal with The Grove. And from my investigations (as I’m no expert on folk) what she’s playing throughout this record is not exactly folk music either. So what do I call this? Flute metal? Something in between? I’m not really sure.

Throughout this record the flute is front and center. Rather than an accent, it is the main driving force of the album. I’m not a flautist, and I’m not really competent to judge flute music, but to my ear her playing is mostly excellent, and fits the atmosphere she is going for with this record. It varies tempo enough to remain interesting and dances across the mix with eerie melodies. I find her playing to work especially well in the lighter bits of the album, creating the space that I think best encapsulates the idea of the Grove. There are distorted flute bits as well that accentuate the more “metal” sounds.

But is this record any good? Ehhhh….. Don’t get me wrong, there’s good stuff here for sure, and it’s certainly pleasant to listen to, but nothing really grabs me and keeps me wanting to come back. Inconsistent, is perhaps a good descriptor. After each listen, I don’t regret having done so, but neither do I think to myself “that was a really good album!” There’s potential here for sure, but the talent hasn’t yet translated into really good songwriting for me.

The record particularly drags for the first half. The Heart of the Grove seems truncated, as if it doesn’t finish the ideas it set out to do even though it’s not a short song. There’s good ideas there, but there’s no time to develop them into something interesting that I want to keep coming back to. The chorus is good, but maybe explore a little more after that last one.

The next couple of songs are fine, offering some excellent flute work but not a whole lot by way of catchy melodies. The track The Grove sounds nice though, and puts you back in the world that I’m sure Kramer-Rodger is trying to craft.

Despite a mixed opening and middle, the record finishes quite strong. Spirit Woman is the heaviest track on the album by a country mile, and one of the best. Having a guest take up the harsh vocals, it weaves in and out with the flute and really nails it. I can see why this was the lead single. The Unnamed closes out the record strongly with another more metal track that emphasises the heaviness in her music of such varied texture.

Overall, this album is fine. It’s not bad by any means, but it’s far from being great. I may come back to it again, but I think it has at least renewed my interest in exploring some folk music and/or folk metal. I do look forward to what this accomplished flautist brings in the future. She certainly has chops, I just think she needs to nail down more consistent songwriting.

6/10 • Top Tracks: Spirit Woman; The Unnamed; The Heart of the Grove

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MUSICA UNIVERSALIS