Drudkh
Encyclopedia
Drudkh is a Ukrainian
metal band that mixes elements of folk metal
and black metal
. They were formed by Roman Saenko, prolific metal musician, the leading member of Hate Forest
, Dark Ages
and Blood of Kingu
; Thurios, the leading member of Astrofaes
and, with Saenko, a former member of Hate Forest; and Yuriy Synytsky, of Lucifugum (session drummer) and Definition Sane. Their lyrical contents embrace Slavic mythology
, seasons and poetry. Many of the band's lyrics are derived from the works of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Ukrainian poets, especially Taras Shevchenko
.
Drudkh have been particularly secretive throughout the course of their career, even for a black metal band, giving no interviews and not releasing the lyrics to several of their albums.
From their conception until 2009, Drudkh did not have any official website, but in May 2009 Season of Mist
launched an official Myspace, operated not by bandmates, but by workers of the label.
extreme metal
record label Supernal Music
. All albums (with the exception of the EP) have also been released on vinyl through two Finnish
black metal labels, Northern Heritage and Faustian Distribution.
The band's first album, Forgotten Legends, was released on February 23, 2003 (see 2003 in music
). The album establishes the band's trademark epic sound; its three tracks and one outro span nearly forty minutes, with the longest track, "False Dawn," nearing the sixteen-minute mark. Now considered a classic, Terrorizer included Forgotten Legends in its Top 40 Black Metal albums list.
Autumn Aurora followed on November 28, 2004 (see 2004 in music
). While continuing the same general mood and atmosphere of its predecessor, it distinguishes itself from its predecessor by being the first Drudkh album to incorporate synthesizers and other such keyboard instrument
s. Autumn Aurora has frequently been cited as Drudkh's finest album, although some fans give the nod to the later Blood in Our Wells. This record had a strong critical success: for example, it was chosen the best album of the year by Chronicles of Chaos
web-zine.
After "Autumn Aurora", Amorth (drums, keyboards) joined the band and replaced Yuriy.
The Swan Road (Лебединий Шлях), released on March 14, 2005 (see 2005 in music
), marked a departure in a number of ways. It was very well received and is the first Drudkh album to have Ukrainian lyrics, all of which are adapted or taken directly from the work The Haidamakas (1841
) by Taras Shevchenko
, narrating about the famous Ukrainian anti-Polish peasant rebellion of 1768. Booklet of CD included the prints of Shevchenko's notebooks, which were mistaken for songs lyrics by many non-Ukrainian-speaking fans. With the addition of Shevchenko's poetry, the material can also be said to have taken a more pronounced nationalistic leaning on this release (a move continued on the next album). The music's atmosphere is also significantly more urgent, with the drums pushed to the forefront of the mix and a vastly increased use of blast beats.
On March 23, 2006 (see 2006 in music
), Drudkh released Blood in Our Wells
(Кров у Наших Криницях), once again through Supernal Music
. On this album, poetry from four of the most respected nineteenth- and twentieth-century Ukrainian poets (including Oleksandr Oles
and Lina Kostenko
) serves as lyrical material, and the album itself was dedicated to the memory of Stepan Bandera
, legendary leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
. Musically, the album adds progressive rock
influences and an increased use of traditional heavy metal
soloing
into the mix, while retaining the band's trademark blend of black metal and traditional Ukrainian folk music. In part because several tracks sample the Ukrainian poetic film Mamay
(2003), the album is considered more cinematic than its predecessors. Many fans have cited this album as the band's best work to date. It was a first Drudkh record to appear in Terrorizer Top 40 year list, achieving the 35 position.
After the release of Blood In Our Wells, Amorth was exiled from the band and new members Krechet (bass) and Vlad (drums) joined.
On October 19, 2006 Drudkh released Songs of Grief and Solitude (Пісні Скорботи і Самітності), marking a different path for the band. Rather than being a black metal album, this release is composed of folk music, with much of the music inspired by, or even taken directly from, previous Drudkh compositions (for example, "The Cranes Will Never Return Here" is based on a riff from "Solitude" on Blood in Our Wells, and "Archaic Dance" is based on a riff from "Glare of 1768" on The Swan Road). It is entirely instrumental, with barely any drumming, and prominently features wind instruments. The album received mixed reviews, with some fans criticising the band for reusing old material, and others praising the band's radical reconstruction of its own sound.
On April 16, 2007 (see 2007 in music
), Supernal Music released Drudkh's Anti-Urban
, a 45-RPM 10 inch coloured vinyl limited to 999 copies containing exclusive tracks available only to Supernal Music customers. It was re-released as mini CD
in 2009 as part of deluxe box-set edition of Microcosmos album by Season of Mist
.
The band's next release, a full-length black metal album titled Estrangement
(Вiдчуженiсть), was released on August 25, 2007 as a deluxe version. The album, which was previously known under the title River of Tears, had been rumored to have a "Burzum
ic" feel before its release, and in some ways this was borne out by the album's release; its songs were in many ways significantly more minimalistic than those on Blood in Our Wells and its lyrics based completely on the 1931-1932 works of Ukrainian poet Oleh Olzhych. Reception to the album has been largely positive, with many fans hailing it as a return to the band's roots or praising the band's musicianship demonstrated in the album's many solos. Notably, the album also featured the band's first prominent use of blast beats since The Swan Road. A spoken introduction in the first track is taken from the 1995 Ukrainian feature film Atentat about life and assassination of Stepan Bandera
.
In Autumn 2008 the band signed with the French label Season Of Mist
. On June 22, 2009, July 14 in US, the seventh Drudkh album Microcosmos has been released under label Underground Activists and published by Season Of Mist
. The release was on CD Digipak version and a limited edition box set with an MCD re-release of Anti-Urban
EP.
In this album, the band continues using lyrics from Ukrainian
poets, like Ivan Franko
, Oleh Olzhych or Bohdan Rubchak.
Like in Estrangement
, the outro is taken from the 1995 Ukrainian feature film Atentat. The album was praised by critics: it was ranked 11 in Terrorizer Top 40 albums of 2009 and 3 in Top 30 Metal Albums of 2009 by Haunting the Chapel, the Stereogum
heavy music section.
In November 2009, Season of Mist have started to re-release Drudkh's whole catalogue with the remastered reissues of "Forgotten Legends" and "Autumn Aurora". All Drudkh's full-length albums were re-released by their new label in nearly half a year, finishing with new editions of Songs of Grief and Solitude and Estrangement in June 2010.
Drudkh's eighth full-length album called Handful of Stars
(Пригорща зірок) was released on September 21, 2010, via Season of Mist
. Critics and fans noticed the changes in style and sound: it was much clearer than previous efforts and was obviously influenced by post-rock
and such bands as Alcest
. Due to these features record received the mixed reviews, though it appeared in Haunting the Chapels Top 50 Albums of 2010 at 8 position. Again, for lyrics was used the poetry of Ukrainian
authors, such as Oleksa Stefanovych and Svyatoslav Gordynskyj. The release of new Drudkh full-length was supported with Slavonic Chronicles
mini album, which consisted two covers of Master's Hammer
and Sacrilegium. It was released as a CD only with deluxe edition of Handful of Stars and also as 10" LP including download card to get the digital version of the record. As opposed to Handful of Stars, Slavonic Chronicles was much more stylistically similar to their older works like Blood in Our Wells.
The post-rock direction, that was present at Handful of Stars, has been developed in new project entitled Old Silver Key by Drudkh members with famous French
artist Neige from Alcest
and other bands on vocals. This supergroup
signed to Season of Mist
and released debut record entitled Tales of Wanderings on September 16 (September 27 in North America) 2011.
The next Drudkh album was recorded in summer of 2011. It will mark a return to the band's roots - long emotional compositions in vein of pagan black metal, inspired by nature and seasons change. This new record is entitled Eternal Turn of the Wheel and is planned to be released on February 24 (February 28 in North America) of 2012 through Season of Mist
.
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
metal band that mixes elements of folk metal
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
and black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
. They were formed by Roman Saenko, prolific metal musician, the leading member of Hate Forest
Hate Forest
Hate Forest was a Ukrainian black metal band formed by Roman Saenko, the leading member of Drudkh, Dark Ages, and Blood of Kingu. Thurios joined the band in 1998 after the recording of "Scythia". The music is mostly very fast, but occasionally slow, with low, distorted vocals and dark ambient...
, Dark Ages
Dark Ages (band)
Dark Ages is a minimalist dark ambient band from Ukraine formed in 2004 by the main member of Drudkh, Blood of Kingu and Hate Forest. They draw their lyrical themes from European medieval history...
and Blood of Kingu
Blood of Kingu
Blood of Kingu is a black metal band from Ukraine formed in 2005 by the main member of Drudkh, Dark Ages and Hate Forest.Lyrically, Blood of Kingu deals with Sumerian/Ancient Egyptian and Indo-European mythology and history. The vocals include death growls as well as Tibetan chants.On 7 December...
; Thurios, the leading member of Astrofaes
Astrofaes
Astrofaes, a Ukrainian black metal band from the town of Kharkiv, first came in to being in 1996 as a project between Thurios and Khorus...
and, with Saenko, a former member of Hate Forest; and Yuriy Synytsky, of Lucifugum (session drummer) and Definition Sane. Their lyrical contents embrace Slavic mythology
Slavic mythology
Slavic mythology is the mythological aspect of the polytheistic religion that was practised by the Slavs before Christianisation.The religion possesses many common traits with other religions descended from the Proto-Indo-European religion....
, seasons and poetry. Many of the band's lyrics are derived from the works of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Ukrainian poets, especially Taras Shevchenko
Taras Shevchenko
Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko -Life:Born into a serf family of Hryhoriy Ivanovych Shevchenko and Kateryna Yakymivna Shevchenko in the village of Moryntsi, of Kiev Governorate of the Russian Empire Shevchenko was orphaned at the age of eleven...
.
Drudkh have been particularly secretive throughout the course of their career, even for a black metal band, giving no interviews and not releasing the lyrics to several of their albums.
From their conception until 2009, Drudkh did not have any official website, but in May 2009 Season of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
launched an official Myspace, operated not by bandmates, but by workers of the label.
History
Drudkh have released six albums and one EP on the EnglishEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
extreme metal
Extreme metal
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. The term usually refers to a more abrasive, harsher, underground, non-commercialized style or sound nearly always associated with genres like black metal,...
record label Supernal Music
Supernal Music
Alex Kurtagić , born 1970 and residing in the United Kingdom, is a radical traditionalist, racial-realist, elitist, pro-White activist and author on the Alternative and New Right author, artist, musician, publisher, translator, interviewer, blogger, movie and book reviewer, prolific writer,...
. All albums (with the exception of the EP) have also been released on vinyl through two Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
black metal labels, Northern Heritage and Faustian Distribution.
The band's first album, Forgotten Legends, was released on February 23, 2003 (see 2003 in music
2003 in music
-January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested...
). The album establishes the band's trademark epic sound; its three tracks and one outro span nearly forty minutes, with the longest track, "False Dawn," nearing the sixteen-minute mark. Now considered a classic, Terrorizer included Forgotten Legends in its Top 40 Black Metal albums list.
Autumn Aurora followed on November 28, 2004 (see 2004 in music
2004 in music
See also:* 2004 in music Record labels established in 2004-January:*January 1**The Vienna New Year's Concert is conducted by Riccardo Muti.**Kurt Nilsen wins World Idol....
). While continuing the same general mood and atmosphere of its predecessor, it distinguishes itself from its predecessor by being the first Drudkh album to incorporate synthesizers and other such keyboard instrument
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
s. Autumn Aurora has frequently been cited as Drudkh's finest album, although some fans give the nod to the later Blood in Our Wells. This record had a strong critical success: for example, it was chosen the best album of the year by Chronicles of Chaos
Chronicles of Chaos
Chronicles of Chaos is an extreme metal webzine. It focuses on artists that are generally outside the metal mainstream, and occasionally covers other forms of extreme music as well. Online since August 1995, Chronicles of Chaos is one of the longest standing active websites of its kind, prompting...
web-zine.
After "Autumn Aurora", Amorth (drums, keyboards) joined the band and replaced Yuriy.
The Swan Road (Лебединий Шлях), released on March 14, 2005 (see 2005 in music
2005 in music
-Events:*During the year 2005, 12 rock music albums scored number 1 in the USA. This was the first time even ten albums have scored number 1 since 1996.-January:...
), marked a departure in a number of ways. It was very well received and is the first Drudkh album to have Ukrainian lyrics, all of which are adapted or taken directly from the work The Haidamakas (1841
1841 in literature
The year 1841 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:*Horace Greeley begins publication of the New York Tribune.*Punch magazine is founded in London.-New books:*William Harrison Ainsworth - Old St...
) by Taras Shevchenko
Taras Shevchenko
Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko -Life:Born into a serf family of Hryhoriy Ivanovych Shevchenko and Kateryna Yakymivna Shevchenko in the village of Moryntsi, of Kiev Governorate of the Russian Empire Shevchenko was orphaned at the age of eleven...
, narrating about the famous Ukrainian anti-Polish peasant rebellion of 1768. Booklet of CD included the prints of Shevchenko's notebooks, which were mistaken for songs lyrics by many non-Ukrainian-speaking fans. With the addition of Shevchenko's poetry, the material can also be said to have taken a more pronounced nationalistic leaning on this release (a move continued on the next album). The music's atmosphere is also significantly more urgent, with the drums pushed to the forefront of the mix and a vastly increased use of blast beats.
On March 23, 2006 (see 2006 in music
2006 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2006.-January:*January 10 – Eric Burdon releases his album Soul of a Man and begins touring with a new band....
), Drudkh released Blood in Our Wells
Blood in Our Wells
-References:...
(Кров у Наших Криницях), once again through Supernal Music
Supernal Music
Alex Kurtagić , born 1970 and residing in the United Kingdom, is a radical traditionalist, racial-realist, elitist, pro-White activist and author on the Alternative and New Right author, artist, musician, publisher, translator, interviewer, blogger, movie and book reviewer, prolific writer,...
. On this album, poetry from four of the most respected nineteenth- and twentieth-century Ukrainian poets (including Oleksandr Oles
Oleksandr Oles
Oleksandr Ivanovych Oles , a well-known Ukrainian writer and poet. He is a father of another Ukrainian poet and political activist Oleh Olzhych who perished in the Nazi labor camps in 1944....
and Lina Kostenko
Lina Kostenko
Lina Kostenko is a Ukrainian poet and writer, recipient of the Shevchenko Award . Kostenko is a leading representative of Ukrainian poets of the sixties known as Shestydesiantnyky . This group started publishing during the 1950s and reached its apex during the early 1960s...
) serves as lyrical material, and the album itself was dedicated to the memory of Stepan Bandera
Stepan Bandera
Stepan Andriyovych Bandera was a Ukrainian politician and one of the leaders of Ukrainian national movement in Western Ukraine , who headed the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists...
, legendary leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists
The Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists is a Ukrainian political organization which as a movement originally was created in 1929 in Western Ukraine . The OUN accepted violence as an acceptable tool in the fight against foreign and domestic enemies particularly Poland and Russia...
. Musically, the album adds progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
influences and an increased use of traditional heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
soloing
Guitar solo
In popular music, a guitar solo is a melodic passage, section, or entire piece of music written for an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Guitar solos, which often contain varying degrees of improvisation, are used in many styles of popular music such as blues, jazz, rock and metal styles such...
into the mix, while retaining the band's trademark blend of black metal and traditional Ukrainian folk music. In part because several tracks sample the Ukrainian poetic film Mamay
Mamay (film)
Mamay is a 2003 Ukrainian language film. Based on ancient Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar folklore, this is a Ukrainian version of Romeo and Juliet. A fugitive Cossack falls in love with a stunningly beautiful Tatar woman who saves him from certain death. Their love defies age-old hatred between their...
(2003), the album is considered more cinematic than its predecessors. Many fans have cited this album as the band's best work to date. It was a first Drudkh record to appear in Terrorizer Top 40 year list, achieving the 35 position.
After the release of Blood In Our Wells, Amorth was exiled from the band and new members Krechet (bass) and Vlad (drums) joined.
On October 19, 2006 Drudkh released Songs of Grief and Solitude (Пісні Скорботи і Самітності), marking a different path for the band. Rather than being a black metal album, this release is composed of folk music, with much of the music inspired by, or even taken directly from, previous Drudkh compositions (for example, "The Cranes Will Never Return Here" is based on a riff from "Solitude" on Blood in Our Wells, and "Archaic Dance" is based on a riff from "Glare of 1768" on The Swan Road). It is entirely instrumental, with barely any drumming, and prominently features wind instruments. The album received mixed reviews, with some fans criticising the band for reusing old material, and others praising the band's radical reconstruction of its own sound.
On April 16, 2007 (see 2007 in music
2007 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2007.-January:*January 1 - George Shearing is knighted for services to music in the Queen's New Year Honours List. Evelyn Glennie becomes a Dame...
), Supernal Music released Drudkh's Anti-Urban
Anti-Urban
Anti-Urban is an EP released by Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh on April 16, 2007 by Supernal Music. It is the band's first EP and sixth release overall. It is only available directly from the label, and has been limited to a two-time-only pressing of 999 10-inch vinyl records...
, a 45-RPM 10 inch coloured vinyl limited to 999 copies containing exclusive tracks available only to Supernal Music customers. It was re-released as mini CD
Mini CD
Mini CDs, or “pocket CDs” are CDs with a smaller diameter and one third the capacity.-Formats:Amongst the various formats are the* Mini CD single, a small disc. The format is mainly used for audio CD singles in certain regions , much like the old vinyl single...
in 2009 as part of deluxe box-set edition of Microcosmos album by Season of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
.
The band's next release, a full-length black metal album titled Estrangement
Estrangement
Estrangement is the sixth album by Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh, released in August 2007. The album was previously known under the title River of Tears, but then had a name change. Its songs have a minimalistic influence and also features the band's first prominent use of blast beats since...
(Вiдчуженiсть), was released on August 25, 2007 as a deluxe version. The album, which was previously known under the title River of Tears, had been rumored to have a "Burzum
Burzum
Burzum is a musical project by Varg Vikernes . It began during 1991 in Bergen, Norway and quickly became prominent within the early Norwegian black metal scene...
ic" feel before its release, and in some ways this was borne out by the album's release; its songs were in many ways significantly more minimalistic than those on Blood in Our Wells and its lyrics based completely on the 1931-1932 works of Ukrainian poet Oleh Olzhych. Reception to the album has been largely positive, with many fans hailing it as a return to the band's roots or praising the band's musicianship demonstrated in the album's many solos. Notably, the album also featured the band's first prominent use of blast beats since The Swan Road. A spoken introduction in the first track is taken from the 1995 Ukrainian feature film Atentat about life and assassination of Stepan Bandera
Stepan Bandera
Stepan Andriyovych Bandera was a Ukrainian politician and one of the leaders of Ukrainian national movement in Western Ukraine , who headed the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists...
.
In Autumn 2008 the band signed with the French label Season Of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
. On June 22, 2009, July 14 in US, the seventh Drudkh album Microcosmos has been released under label Underground Activists and published by Season Of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
. The release was on CD Digipak version and a limited edition box set with an MCD re-release of Anti-Urban
Anti-Urban
Anti-Urban is an EP released by Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh on April 16, 2007 by Supernal Music. It is the band's first EP and sixth release overall. It is only available directly from the label, and has been limited to a two-time-only pressing of 999 10-inch vinyl records...
EP.
In this album, the band continues using lyrics from Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
poets, like Ivan Franko
Ivan Franko
Ivan Yakovych Franko was a Ukrainian poet, writer, social and literary critic, journalist, interpreter, economist, political activist, doctor of philosophy, the author of the first detective novels and modern poetry in the Ukrainian language....
, Oleh Olzhych or Bohdan Rubchak.
Like in Estrangement
Estrangement
Estrangement is the sixth album by Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh, released in August 2007. The album was previously known under the title River of Tears, but then had a name change. Its songs have a minimalistic influence and also features the band's first prominent use of blast beats since...
, the outro is taken from the 1995 Ukrainian feature film Atentat. The album was praised by critics: it was ranked 11 in Terrorizer Top 40 albums of 2009 and 3 in Top 30 Metal Albums of 2009 by Haunting the Chapel, the Stereogum
Stereogum
Stereogum was one of the first MP3 blogs. It was created by Scott Lapatine in January 2002 with a focus on independent and alternative music news, downloads, videos, and gossip. Stereogum has received several awards and citations, including the 2008 Plug Award for best music blog, Blender's...
heavy music section.
In November 2009, Season of Mist have started to re-release Drudkh's whole catalogue with the remastered reissues of "Forgotten Legends" and "Autumn Aurora". All Drudkh's full-length albums were re-released by their new label in nearly half a year, finishing with new editions of Songs of Grief and Solitude and Estrangement in June 2010.
Drudkh's eighth full-length album called Handful of Stars
Handful of Stars
-Personnel:*Thurios - vocals, guitars, keyboards*Roman - guitars*Krechet - bass*Vlad - drums, keyboards...
(Пригорща зірок) was released on September 21, 2010, via Season of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
. Critics and fans noticed the changes in style and sound: it was much clearer than previous efforts and was obviously influenced by post-rock
Post-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...
and such bands as Alcest
Alcest
Alcest is a musical project born in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, France. It began in 2000 with three members – Neige, Aegnor and Argoth. This band released a demo of black metal songs in 2001. Shortly after, Aegnor and Argoth left the band, leaving Neige as the sole member...
. Due to these features record received the mixed reviews, though it appeared in Haunting the Chapels Top 50 Albums of 2010 at 8 position. Again, for lyrics was used the poetry of Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
authors, such as Oleksa Stefanovych and Svyatoslav Gordynskyj. The release of new Drudkh full-length was supported with Slavonic Chronicles
Slavonic Chronicles
Slavonic Chronicles is an EP released by Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh on September 20, 2010 through French label Season of Mist. It was released in two formats: as 10" LP and as mini CD...
mini album, which consisted two covers of Master's Hammer
Master's Hammer
Master's Hammer are a black metal band from the Czech Republic. They were founded in 1987 and produced several demos, before releasing their debut album Ritual in 1990...
and Sacrilegium. It was released as a CD only with deluxe edition of Handful of Stars and also as 10" LP including download card to get the digital version of the record. As opposed to Handful of Stars, Slavonic Chronicles was much more stylistically similar to their older works like Blood in Our Wells.
The post-rock direction, that was present at Handful of Stars, has been developed in new project entitled Old Silver Key by Drudkh members with famous French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
artist Neige from Alcest
Alcest
Alcest is a musical project born in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, France. It began in 2000 with three members – Neige, Aegnor and Argoth. This band released a demo of black metal songs in 2001. Shortly after, Aegnor and Argoth left the band, leaving Neige as the sole member...
and other bands on vocals. This supergroup
Supergroup (music)
In the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe "a rock music group whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups"....
signed to Season of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
and released debut record entitled Tales of Wanderings on September 16 (September 27 in North America) 2011.
The next Drudkh album was recorded in summer of 2011. It will mark a return to the band's roots - long emotional compositions in vein of pagan black metal, inspired by nature and seasons change. This new record is entitled Eternal Turn of the Wheel and is planned to be released on February 24 (February 28 in North America) of 2012 through Season of Mist
Season of Mist
Season of Mist is a record label and record distributor with subsidiaries in France and the United States. The record label was founded in 1996 by Michael S. Berberian in Marseille, France. From the start releasing black metal, pagan metal and death metal records, the label moved on to releasing...
.
Band members since "Estrangement"
- Roman (Roman Saenko, Роман Саєнко) (also in Hate ForestHate ForestHate Forest was a Ukrainian black metal band formed by Roman Saenko, the leading member of Drudkh, Dark Ages, and Blood of Kingu. Thurios joined the band in 1998 after the recording of "Scythia". The music is mostly very fast, but occasionally slow, with low, distorted vocals and dark ambient...
, Dark AgesDark Ages (band)Dark Ages is a minimalist dark ambient band from Ukraine formed in 2004 by the main member of Drudkh, Blood of Kingu and Hate Forest. They draw their lyrical themes from European medieval history...
, Blood Of KinguBlood of KinguBlood of Kingu is a black metal band from Ukraine formed in 2005 by the main member of Drudkh, Dark Ages and Hate Forest.Lyrically, Blood of Kingu deals with Sumerian/Ancient Egyptian and Indo-European mythology and history. The vocals include death growls as well as Tibetan chants.On 7 December...
) - guitars - Thurios (Roman Blahykh, Роман Благих) (also in Hate ForestHate ForestHate Forest was a Ukrainian black metal band formed by Roman Saenko, the leading member of Drudkh, Dark Ages, and Blood of Kingu. Thurios joined the band in 1998 after the recording of "Scythia". The music is mostly very fast, but occasionally slow, with low, distorted vocals and dark ambient...
and AstrofaesAstrofaesAstrofaes, a Ukrainian black metal band from the town of Kharkiv, first came in to being in 1996 as a project between Thurios and Khorus...
) - vocals, guitars - Krechet (also in AstrofaesAstrofaesAstrofaes, a Ukrainian black metal band from the town of Kharkiv, first came in to being in 1996 as a project between Thurios and Khorus...
) - bass - Vlad - drums, keyboards
Former band members
- Yuriy Synytsky (also session for Lucifugum) - session drums
- Amorth - session drums
Studio albums
- Forgotten Legends (2003)
- Autumn Aurora (2004)
- The Swan Road (2005)
- Blood in Our WellsBlood in Our Wells-References:...
(2006) - Songs of Grief and Solitude (2006)
- EstrangementEstrangementEstrangement is the sixth album by Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh, released in August 2007. The album was previously known under the title River of Tears, but then had a name change. Its songs have a minimalistic influence and also features the band's first prominent use of blast beats since...
(2007) - Microcosmos (2009)
- Handful of StarsHandful of Stars-Personnel:*Thurios - vocals, guitars, keyboards*Roman - guitars*Krechet - bass*Vlad - drums, keyboards...
(2010) - Eternal Turn of the Wheel (2012)