Schattenwald- Die Naturgesichte

Artist: Schattenwald

Reviewer: Vena Kava

The album Die Naturgesichte comes out of Poland by Schattenwald and is a Pagan musical journey through nature. Die Naturgesichte means the faces of nature and this album does a great job bringing together the four elements present both in nature and the Pagan tradition; earth, fire, water, and air; heard here as running streams, chirping birds, wind, crackling fire, etc. The album is described, as dark ambient but don’t be fooled, there is more light than dark seen in this work. The Eerie beginning makes us believe we are entering a dark realm onto a dark journey, but the next 6 songs are filled with light, life, and enthusiasm. There certainly is much life present in this album, and this is one of the key reasons it works so nicely. It’s more like a walk through a dark forest with glimpses of light shining through the trees; it is not a scary voyage, but rather a tranquil one… one of wisdom and grace. Majority of the songs contain a delicate array of sounds that are quite peaceful. The pace changes quite a bit in “Rufen das Wind” where the drums march you rhythmically into a magical world of sorts and “Feuerfest” which exhibits the more aggressive ferocity of fire. “Schrei aus dem Wald” is the only track that has a very dark and depressing feel, it is also the last track on the album, thus, ending the Journey. The middle of the journey is the best part. It was such a pleasant venture; it makes me wonder what happened that makes the end so sad. This indeed is a very visual album, one that I will definitely be listening to more than once.