While flutes are not unheard of in music, it may not be considered the norm in metal music and Canada’s Ember Belladonna is rectifying that with her debut album, The Grove.
A wonderful blend of instrumentals, traditional songs, and metal, The Grove is a journey through music and the imagination. The Grove could be the soundtrack to a wonderfully crafted fantasy world where the hero battles beasts and nymphs and stares across a lush green countryside in victory with a love by their side.
Whether that was the intention of Ember Belladonna or not, The Grove is enchanting and enlightening.
On the album, the artist says,
“My goal with my music and with this album is to make the flute the lead within a genre it’s not always heard in. To surprise people with the way this instrument can sound, and how it can fit into metal music in ways you don’t expect. You will hear what sounds like more ‘traditional’ flute playing as well as a much edgier sound throughout the album. In certain tracks I use a type of flute called the glissando flute paired with a guitar pedal to give it a completely new sound.”
Ember worked with James Delbridge from Lycanthro on “Ruination”, The Dark Eyed Musician on “The Grove”, and The Inferno Doll on “Spirit Woman”. Respectively, the songs look at human relationship to the natural world, the magical world of The Grove created by the artist, and the haunting tale of a woman wronged by the men in life.
The expansive nature of The Grove from narrative to mood, and Ember Belladonna’s haunting flute has created a ravishing sonic world that is riveting and spellbinding.
The Grove has the ability to hypnotise and possess one’s soul.
MUST LISTEN TRACKS: “Heart of the Grove” “Spirit Woman”, “Unnamed”
The Grove is out on February 9th.
