SALTATIO MORTIS

Saltatio Mortis, which translates as ‘Dance of Death’, are a nine piece (yes, nine!) from Mannheim in Germany and are one of the main players in the predominantly German ‘Medieval metal’ scene, alongside Subway to Sally, Morgen Stern and Letzte Instanz. ‘Wer Wind Saet is the band’s eighth full length release, their debut being released in 2001. Alongside the normal guitar, drums and keyboards you’d find being played by most rock bands, Saltatio Mortis’ abundant membership play instruments such as the bagpipes (which are prominent throughout this release and are utilised to great effect), shawm, lute, flute, fiddle, mandolin and harp! The album opens with ‘Ebenbild’ which features the sound of the aforementioned pipes before developing into a full on thrash fest which showcases both sides of this intriguing band. ‘Salome’ follows and has an Eastern feel to it and is a catchy effort. It also features some fine female vocals, although it seems the band don’t have a woman amongst their ample number! ‘La Jument de Michad’ is the third track and, somewhat strangely, is sung in French. I say strangely as the rest of the tracks on this album are sung in German. The track begins with an intro that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Circulus release before evolving into a fast paced rocker with a cracking guitar solo towards the end. Special mention must be made of the vocals, which are particularly manic! The next cut, ‘Letze Worte’, is more balladic in feel with the bagpipes particularly evident. The remainder of the tracks follow in the same vein and are roughly split between pacy rockers with crunching riffs and slower, gentler, more acoustic tracks. The folk instrumentation is never completely absent however. I think this is a superb album and a truly pleasant surprise. I am really pleased that there are another seven releases out there for me to investigate. If you, like me, had never heard of Medieval metal but, also like me, appreciate both Rammstein and Circulus (and why not!) then I can’t recommend this album highly enough. Now, where can I find out when they’re playing live in the UK…

LABEL:

FORMAT:

Napalm Records

Album

WER WIND SAET

Review by Dave Uphill

RUNNING TIME:

52:03

RELEASE DATE:

31st Aug 2009

TRACK LISTING

1) Ebenbild
2) Salome
3) La Jument De Michao
4) Letzte Worte
5) Kaltes Herz
6) Rastlos
7) Miststück
8) Tief In Mir
9) Aus Träumen Gebaut
10) Manus Manum Lavat
11) Vergessene Götter
12) Wir Säen Den Wind

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

Germany

"If you, like me, had never heard of Medieval metal but, also like me, appreciate both Rammstein and Circulus...then I can’t recommend this album highly enough."