Hangatyr/Sumpf der Fäule/2025 Full Length Review

 

  Germany's  Hangatyr  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  shows  the  music  going  for  a  pagan  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2025  album  "Sumpf  der Fäule"  which  will  be  released  in  October.

  Epic  sounding  synths  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  along  with  most  of  the  tracks  also  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  the  harsh  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  while  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  blast  beats  are  also  utilized  when  the  music  speeds  up.

  When  tremolo  picking  is  added  into  the  fast  riffs  they  also  give  the  album  more  of  a r aw  feeling  while  the  riffing  also  adds  in  a  great  amount  of  melody.  Throughout  the  album  you  can  also  hear  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  the  music  also  being  very  heavily  influenced  by  the  mid  90's  Nordic  era  of  the  genre,  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  closing  track  also  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing.

  On  this  recording  Hangatyr  brings  out   a  very  raw,  aggressive  and  melodic  style  of  pagan  black  metal.  The  production  sounds  very  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  German  and  cover  Norse  Mythology.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Hangatyr  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  pagan  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Sumpf  der  Fäule"  and  "Dämmerung".  8  out  of  10.

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Hangatyr/Kalt/2020 Full Length Review

  Hangatyr  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  pagan  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2020  album  "Kalt"  which  will  be  released  in  March.

  A  very  fast,  raw  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats.  The  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  at  times.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  a  great  portion  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  the  music  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  90's  influences  but  also  keeping  it  modern  at  the  same  time

  And  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  nature  orientated  field  recordings  and  acoustic  guitars  can  be  heard  on  an  instrumental  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction  on  the  remaining  tracks.  The  production  sounds  very  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  German  and  cover  Norse  Mythology  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  album  from  Hangatyr  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  aggressive  pagan  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Niedergang"  "Blick  aus  Eis"  and  "Verweht".  8  out of  10.

https://youtu.be/IeNEsS8sN1E   

Hangatyr Interview

1. Can you give us an introduction to the band and also what has been going on since the recording of the new album?

Well, we are Hangatyr, consisting of vocals, 2 guitars, bass and drums. We play a sort of “paganized” Black Metal – without being too restricted in our style of music.
The recordings of our last record “Elemente” (elements) was finished in early 2013. Since then we played some live gigs, have been looking for a record label and finally decided to release it independently. Now we are looking forward to release it on February 1st this year.

2. Recently you have recorded a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style it has taken and also how does it differ from your past recordings?

The song writing process was nearly the same as always, the recording sessions took place in the Unholy studio like on the album before. So there are no big differences with this part. The musical style is mainly Black Metal, but as always there are a lot of influences. I think “Elemente” is far more compact in the songs, coming more straight to the point than “Helwege” back in 2010.

3. The lyrics as well as the band name are based on Norse paganism, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in Norse Paganism and also are you interested in the Paganism of other cultures?

We all are interested in Norse Mythology more or less, so that is why the lyrics are about this topic. And I know, there is a lot in interest in other mythologies or paganism of other cultures. Of course I can’t tell about how well-marked this is for the other guys.

4. What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Uhm… now you’ve got me there.. There have been lots of shows, and every single one has its very special moments. Personally, I liked a lot our third show at all, it was on the inner yard of a castle, the atmosphere was quite impressive.

5. Do you have any touring or show plans once the album is released?

First of it all, the Release-Party of course, like said before it will happen on February 1st in Jena (Café “Wagner”), the second fixed event is our appearance on the Barther Metal Open Air in August this year, more are planned but still to be confirmed. A “tour” in the proper sense will is nearly impossible at the moment, since we all got day jobs.

6. The new album is coming out in March, what are some of your expectations once the album is released?

I don’t know who informed you, but the official release date is January 31st – but still, we got no special expectations, we just hope, people will like it and it will reward us with some gigs.

7. The new album is going to be self released after releasing your previous album on Nocturnal Empire, are you open to working with another
record label again in the future?

We are open to work with a label again, no question. The decision to release the album independently had several reasons. One, the search for a label for an underground band like we are, is hard and time-consuming. In these times, labels try to get by with their already signed bands (especially for financial reasons). On the other hand, our album was finished for almost a year and we wanted to present it to the world.

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of pagan and black metal?

Feedbacks are always different, some people like what we do, some others not, so this is hard to say.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

Time will show… there are no exact plans to choose one direction or the other. We do what we want and what we think is fitting our band, there are no restrictions so far, as long as we are satisfied with it.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

There are few bands that really “influenced” our music. At least, we hope so. One can never say, he would not be influenced by anything, your environment, your personal constitution – everything will have an effect on you more or less. The style of music we listen to is mainly death, black or pagan metal, but everyone of us has its one favourites. All in all its really widespread.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Speaking for myself, I like painting a lot (if time permits, though), for the others… don’t know, nothing uncommon… just the stuff we all do like hanging around with your friends, drinking (lots of) beer…

12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Thank you very much for this interview, to all of you reading this: visit us in the internet (www.hangatyr-metal.de), visit us live – have fun.
Horns up!

Off the record: Interview was conducted with Tele (guitars), cheers

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Hangatyr/Elemente/2014 CD Review

  Hangatyr  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  pagan  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "Elemente".

  When  the  album  starts  tribal  style  drums  and  epic  synths  bring  in  a  feeling  that  reminds  me  of  fantasy  soundtracks,  then  the  album  goes  into  heavy  pagan/black  metal  guitars  that  bring  a  lot  of  melody  to  the  music  along  with  a  mixture  of  slow  parts  and  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  are  in  the  pagan/black  metal  mode  and  use  both  deep  and  high  pitches  while  the  blast  beats  are  more  in  a  semi  mode  and  you  can  hear  a  lot  of  emotion  and  homage  to  the  Norse  ancestors  with  the  music.

  Once  acoustic  guitars  become  a  part  of  the  album  they  bring  in  a  good  amount  of  prog  and  medieval  elements  to  evoke  memories  of  the  dark  pagan  ages  and  as  the  album  moves  on  you  can  hear  traces  of  traditional  and  power  metal  being  added  to  the  instruments  which  is  something  you  can  really  hear  in  the  solos  that  are  utilized  on  the  recording,  while  the  vocals  remain  in  a  different  direction  and  do  not  utilize  any  of  that  influence  but  they  do  add  in  some  death  metal  elements  and  the  music  really  starts  out  with  all  of  the  different  metal  elements  which  also  leads  up  to  a  sound  they  can  call  their  own.

  When  the  album  adds  in  slow  parts  it  brings  out  a  lot  of  darkness  and  sorrow  when  it  is  brought  in  certain  parts  and  the  album  once  a  few  songs  are  added  in  you  can  hear  traces  of  early  melodic  Swedish  pagan/black  metal  from  the  90's  being  a  huge  influence  on  the  guitar  playing,  another  great  highlight  the  album  has  is  when  acoustic  guitars  are  in  the  background of  the  heavier  guitar  riffing  and  it  evokes  a  folk  music  feeling.

  Song  lyrics  are  written  in  German  and  cover  Norse  Paganism  themes,  while  the  production  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  epic  sound  while  the  bass  guitars  are  mixed  down  low  in  the   mix.

  In  my  opinion  Hangatyr  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  pagan/black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Die Sprache  der  Zwolf"  "Zersetzung"  and  "Sie  vergesson  nicht".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

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