Look at that cover art, isn't that a cool one or what? You know what to expect and these guys deliver the goods! From the first song, "Normannenzorn", I was hooked to this pagan/Viking metal release. To begin their travel in the underground scene, they didn't spare the weaponry. Juicy/crunchy riffs, kicking rhythmic section, folksy leads, barbarian vocals, epic keyboards and mid-fast tempos were all chosen as their main strike force. I'm glad they didn't choose the fast/hectic paces, although they are used quite efficiently in a couple of occasions. Then come the nicely melodic elements taken from their Austrian folkloric heritage. I might be wrong here, I mean it could be done by keyboards perhaps, but I can hear mandolin, flute, fiddle and accordion frequently on this release, although it is not mentioned in the info sheet. In any cases, those folksy parts are excellent and if they are synthetic, then I must say: very well done guys! All this barbarian/Viking music remains melodic and I would even go as far as saying catchy too. While listening to Heidenmetal, my foot kept beating the rhythm.
Heidenmetal is an excellent debut album and I'm looking forward to a long and fruitful career for Bifröst. The great compositions abound here like "Normannenzorn", "Ragnarök", "Odins Söhne" and "Heimgang", to name just a few.