Elzevir – Rise from Knees

Final verdict: 80/100
Recommended song: Forgive me
Link to their facebook
I like to review bands that are still unsigned or underground. Elzevir is again such a band. They’re from Moscow, Russia, and play folkish death metal. I wanted to find more about them, but sadly that’s not possible. Normally, I’d check the bands mainpage. Elzevir doesn’t have one, so I’d check the second option: a myspace. They actually have a myspace, but they haven’t update since 2010. There’s a line-up on their myspace, and also the ‘signed’ checkbox is unchecked, so I take it their unsigned. They have a facebook page that has two more links on it (no bio though), but since those pages are in Russian, they’re not really much help.

After hearing this album on repeat the whole day, there’s really only ONE thing I can say about this album. OMG WHY DON’T THESE GUYS HAVE A RECORD DEAL YET???? This is the best death/folk band I’ve heard in a long time (besides the already established names). The only thing that’s wrong with this album, is that they didn’t have the luxury of a good producer. At least, I really dislike the mixing/mastering on the album (and if they had a budget they’d probably fix that first). Other than that: Great guitar/key lines, vocal harmonies, sing-along parts, epic songs, and they sing in plain English so it’s not only fun for the Russians ^^. Seriously like this album!

The mix between guitar, keys and grunts is just dead on. Elzevir plays melodic death metal with folky influences. I like the grunts, but I like it even beter when Alex starts singing. The first song on the album is We must win, and other than that I ‘m not happy with the mixing/mastering, the song is great. (Metal is best at it’s loudest, but that’s certainly true for this album. The louder the music, the less annoying the mixing/mastering sounds) Melodic death metal at it’s best. Almost a shame that I’ve never heard of this band before! Firebirth is the second song on the album. It’s a little more epic, and makes for a great sing-along song. I really find the combo of guitar and keys well played! The two lines really strengthen each other. Insanity starts of with a really dreamy key intro, which is completed by a really great guitar riff. Hearing this I really don’t get why these guys don’t have a record deal. The chorus in the song is awesome, though the vocals are hard to hear due to mixing/mastering problems. The riff of Red 20 strongly reminds me of Equilibrium which is absolutely a good thing 😉 Jeej for folk! Rain of the Day is another strong folk song, with great folky riffs and a catchy chorus. The grunts are so clear that you can sing along rd for word.

The absolute best song on the album is Forgive me, the song they also posted on their facebook. Since I’ve heard the song the melody ‘s been stuck in my head, and I wanted to keep playing the song over and over. Has been a while since that happened! Thanks guys! Alex is not the best singer in the world, but it totally works in this song because it’s supposed to be a bit frail. Another option for best song of the album would be Like Immortal. Great riffs (again guitar and keys really complement each other). Our Simple Plan starts of to be less folky but that’s quickly changed when they get to the chorus. Not the best song of the album. Dragon Catcher starts with a clean guitar intro, and has a great sing-along vocals. My Hope is the last song for the album, and they’ve chosen to end with their ballad, at least, their way of a ballad. It starts with a ballad intro, but then picks up the speed and heaviness of the rest of the songs. It’s really an ending song, and has the ballad intro again after the first verse. Really like this song too ^^

Final verdict: 90/100
This is definitely an album that will be in my top 10 for a long time. The songs are all really well written and awesome! Can’t wait to see these guys live!

Line-up
Alex Louder (vocals ,music, texts)
Orim (keys)
Anna (keys)
WarhearT (solo-guitar)
Oleg (rhytm-guitar)
GuDrone (bass )
Iwor (drums )

Tracklisting
We must win
Firebirth
Mind eclipse
Insanity
Red 20
Rain of that day
Forgive me
Like immortal
Our simple plan
Dragon Catcher
My Hope