Now on their twelfth full-length album “Hex”, (out on 5th September via Pagan Folk Records/Believe), the Germanic tribe Faun has created an album entirely dedicated to witches, understood as the feminine lunar power that manifests itself in all eras and myths. It is therefore a hymn to women and to all magical, ritual, and archetypal connections.
Abandon ourselves in FAUN music
There is no fear in immersing oneself in this liquid universe, in the power of astral passivity, in the genesis of motherhood understood as a force of creation, right from the first track, “Belladonna,” taken from an Irish folk melody, where we are drawn into a sort of traditional dance in which we abandon ourselves.
The language of natural forces
Musical instruments, ancient and modern, speak the language of natural forces, and our bodies are covered with a dew of occult powers that drives us, to the point of exhaustion, to sing hymns to the goddess of the moon. “Lament” is a shamanic hymn, taken from a pre-Christian funeral song, which asks us to know our soul, the one we have lost in our sad daily lives. Reconnecting with the matrix of creation, which is the feminine force, the opposite of the masculine solar power but equally fundamental.
FAUN x Chelsea Wolfe
Strange whispers of the night, like magic spells lost in time, are the backbone of “Nimue,” where the western witch named Chelsea Wolfe is reborn to new life as a magical double born of a nocturnal breath and makes us relive the love story from the time of King Arthur, between the sorceress Nimue and the wizard Merlin. “Blot”, an ancient Norse word meaning sacrifice, indicating a ritual that served to balance ‘giving’ and ‘taking’.
Blot is giving and taking
It is a piece that, in its choral nature, takes us back to the cyclical nature of human existence. Like a book carved in ice, in which only the Furies have the power to read and decide the fate of humanity. The voices of Oliver, Laura, Adaya, and Stephan blend with ancient, medieval, ethnic, and ritual instruments, and Alex’s rhythms merge with the sounds of Neil’s synths and keyboards without ever breaking that atmosphere and that magical circle.
Welcome to the hidden and timeless temple
In “Zauberin” we have access to a temple hidden by mist where the pagan cult of Wicca reigns. “Zauberin,” derived from a German word, refers to a woman skilled in the art of magic and spells. Animism and natural cycles exude in this song rich in medieval and mysterious sounds.
FAUN covers Nick Drake
Sweetness bursts forth with the ballad “Lady Isabel,” written and performed by Oliver Satyr on lute and vocals and embellished with flutes and synthesizers. But FAUN manages to connect everything in their sound universe, so there is also room for a cover of the late Nick Drake’s “Black Eyed Dog,” which fits perfectly with the other tracks on the album.
FAUN meets Dead Can Dance
“Vals” is a pure Swedish folk instrumental featuring special guests Daniel Pettersson and Daniel Fredriksson. We are not too far from Dead Can Dance‘s medieval reinterpretations in “Aion.” But let’s move on to one of the most engaging tracks on this album: “Ylfa Spere,” a veritable cavalcade of ancient music with irresistible rhythms and bagpipes, where we are once again caught up in a sort of apocalyptic folk ecstasy.
The mysterious world of “Umay”
The sweetness of “Hare Spell,” inspired by a spell written in Scotland in 1662 during a witch trial, is a magical polyphony that enters the soul like a sweet poison. A mysterious Eastern world is revealed in “Umay,” where the participation of Turkish singer Fatma Turgut captivates us in a sort of enchanted circle, and our senses dance to the notes of ethnic music and song.
The magical breath of the Elves
The conclusion of this twelfth effort by FAUN is entrusted to “Alfar,” where the magical breath comes from the hills inhabited by the Elves, whose spirits keep us company in a final dance.
A (fantastic) conclusion
“Hex” is the masterful effort of a band with over 27 years of history, transporting us through a portal created by their musical research into an ancient, ritualistic, and ancestral universe, effectively demonstrating that it can coexist alongside our own and be a source of wealth that is too often hidden.
Tracklist
- Belladonna
- Lament
- Nimue (feat. Chelsea Wolfe)
- Blot
- Zauberin
- Lady Isobel
- Black Eyed Dog (by Nick Drake)
- Vals
- Ylfa Spere
- Hare Spell
- Umay (feat. Fatma Turgut)
- Alfar
Line Up
- Oliver Satyr – Vocals, Irish Bouzouki, Moraharpa, Celtic harp, various Lutes
- Laura Fella – Vocals, Framedrum
- Adaya – Vocals, Bagpipes, Flutes, Pandora, Celtic harp
- Stephan Groth – Vocals, Hurdy-gurdy, Flutes, Cittern
- Niel Mitra – Sequencer, sampler, synthesizer.
- Alex Schulz – Percussion, drums