Kev Rowland Formed in 2001, Equilibrium combine elements of folk music, black metal and symphonic metal to create something that is more than the sun of its parts. This 2014 was their fourth release, but they were going through something of a traumatic period of the band in terms of line-up and was actually recorded as a duo, with founder member René Berthiaume providing all the instrumentation and production and Robert "Robse" Dahn (who had joined in 2010) the vocals . Mind you, this never comes across as a duo, but rather a band firing very much on all cylinders. Lyrically they focus on Germanic myths, and the vast majority of their songs are performed in German, so I have no idea what they’re singing about, and instead view the death-style vocals as another instrument in their own right.

That this is brutal and extreme is never in doubt, but it also contains an incredible amount of melody within the sheer heaviness of what is happening. There is a fierce bottom end that wouldn’t sound out of place on Sabbath album, but mixed with Nightwish lightness and symphonies that also brings in Amon Amarth to create something that is quite unique and never boring. This is incredibly impressive, with strong production that dares the listener to play it as loud as they dare. I found the only way to have this at the correct volume was by listening to it on headphones, and then just when one thinks it can’t get any heavier there is a short mandolin interlude and then they are off again. There is something quite Celtic about it, but far more majestic and over the top than one would normally expect: Enya never sounded like this!

This may not suit everyone, but I was enthralled the very first time I heard it and repeated playings have only made me love it even more.