Review of the Album Into Battle by Austrian Folk Metal Band Heathen Foray

In 2017 when you first heard about Austrian folk metal band Heathen Foray, you heard a band that sounds a lot like Finland’s Ensiferum but they are good. Their 2015 studio album Into Battle is their next studio album that we will be analyzing. For this album, most of the songs are in the German language and there is an acoustic version of the song Winterking. It is possible that Heathen Foray decided to explore different musical boundaries or avenues by singing in German or perhaps they just wanted to expand their fan base.

One these songs that is sung partially in German is called Unthinking. The song begins with a beautiful acoustic part before transitioning into this slower riff. The song lyrically is basically about someone that is staring into the eyes of a woman that is a witch. He is trying to escape to a place in which he feels safer. Next is the song that is basically called What I Fight For. This is the song in which lyrically is about a brave man/warrior that is fighting for his freedom and to bring honor to his family. The main riff reminds me of a mixture of Ensiferum and Iron Maiden.

However, this album begins with the song Fight. Lyrically the song is about a person that considers metal music part of his life. He urges people to come together and unite for the purpose of spreading to power of good metal music. Austria has come a long way since the debut of bands such as Dreams of Sanity. “Tir Na Nog” (yes that the name of this song) lyrically is about being brave enough to ride the ship across the stormy seas in order to discover the quest for eternal youth. There is monk that tells these warriors that there is a land where the people over there do not need to worry about anything.

The next song which is translated as Friendship tells the story of the fact that there is true friendship which is eternal in a world that is filled with darkness and lies. Those who are brave enough to go into battle following their clan and remembering that after a long night, the morning sun will rise. If there is one fundamental truth in life, it is that true friends will always be there for us. Wigrid is a very nice classically influenced instrumental song. Stylistically, the song has a lot of synth based playing in it and would have been perhaps better if a choir was singing. The song is also a certain type that we hear in bands such as Fairyland and Rhapsody of Fire.