Eluveitie – Evocation II – Pantheon (2017)

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With a few central members of the band leaving, we were quite curious to see how Eluveitie would move forward. It is safe to say that with “Evocation II – Pantheon” the band continues its well-defined path with another brilliant release filled with memorable moments and catchy songs. Not losing a step, this release delivers over 50-minutes of intoxicatingly catchy Folk/Melodic Metal music that will appeal to any fan of the band and the genre.

As a continuation of their 2009 release, “Evocation I - The Arcane Dominion”, this album kicks off with “Dvressu” by showcasing the talents of new vocalist: Fabienne Erni. Replacing the talented Anna Murphy seemed like a nearly impossible, but the band has done a great job as we can hear in the very upbeat “Epona”. This track has the band’s signature style of delivering lush arrangements and catchy song foundations.

Handling the hurdy gurdy duties, we now have Michalina Malisz, who does a terrific job throughout this release and on tracks like “Nantosvelta”, the uber catchy “Lvgvs”. This last track is probably our favorite song in this release thanks to its fast pace and brilliant arrangements. On the other hand, (mostly) instrumental tracks like the lush “Grannos” and “Cernvnnos” are one the reasons we love Eluveitie and their songwriting skills.

Never having a dull moment and always changing things up, we enjoy how songs like “Artio” transitions into “Aventia” and then to “Ogmios”, going through a variety of styles and moods while keeping the album flowing magically. We particularly enjoy how this release goes into more obscure and Folk territories as it moves from start to end.

New drummer Alain Ackermann and new guitarist Jonas Wolf, feel very well incorporated into the band as crafty songs like “Taranis”. Overall, we feel that Chrigel Glanzmann has done a great job in filling in the band’s vacancies and at the same time has released one of the band’s stronger and more focused releases with “Evocation II – Pantheon”. For anybody concerned on how this release was going to turn out without the old members, we can guarantee you that Eluveitie is as strong as even and ready to rock your speakers.

Band: Eluveitie Album: Evocation II – Pantheon

Label: Nuclear Blast Records

Release: August 18th, 2017

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Genre: Folk/Melodic Metal

Country: Switzerland

Rating: 92/100
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