The Italian folk metallers Elvenking are back with their fifth album “Two Tragedy Poets (...And a Caravan of Weird Figures)”, which is their most clearly folk orientated of their albums so far.  After “The Scythe” of 2007, which was a different, almost totally power metal album, Elvenking return to their roots, following the tradition of their debut record “Heathenreel” and “Wyrd”.

“Two Tragedy Poets”is an acoustic album in general, with the exception of some electric guitar lines. The acoustic guitars are harmonically combined with the violin and keyboard parts, making a very pleasant, melodic and atmospheric ensemble with a strong folk feeling. The production is also very good, making the result the most interesting and rich acoustic work I have ever heard so far.

One thing that sounded kind of irrelevant to me is the cover of “Heaven is a Place on Εarth” a pop song by the 80’s singer Belinda Carlisle. The rest songs of the album are all new, excluding the 2 acoustic versions of “The Winter Wake” και “Wanderer” from their “The Winter Wake” album of 2006. The songs that are more conspicuous are “Not my Final Song”, with its catchy refrain, “Another Awful Hobs Tale”, with its exciting violin melodies and its happy, dancing atmosphere, “From Blood To Stone” with its characteristic  chorus, as well as “Miss Conception”. 

For all those who got acquainted to the sound of Elvenking through “The Scythe”, they will possibly be kind of alienated by their clear/ folk/melodic/atmospheric orientation of their new work. But for those who are fond of acoustic albums, especially the good ones of this genre, they will be thrilled by “Two Tragedy Poets “. As far as I am concerned, I am somewhere in the middle…