Deviator - To Forgotten Path - Triumph of The Will

The second review in my Eastern European trilogy features Ukrainian solo-black metal project Deviator and the band's latest compilation To Forgotten Path - Triumph of The Will.  This is a very new release, having only seen the light of day in January. It gathers up re-recordings, including four from the 2009 full-length Mighty Black Inner Flame and one from Voice of The Native Blood. The final three songs featured on Fehu-Fohat-Fire. It feels a bit strange to be reviewing a release solely made up of re-recorded material or music that has appeared on a previous album, especially with so many new releases coming out all of the time, but I guess it's an artists perogative in terms of what they release and Deviator has featured on This Noise Is Ours a few times in the past.

Tracklist:-

1. Forgotten Hope
2. Mighty Black Inner Flame
3. Undying Darkness
4. Raw Symphony of Sorrow
5. Thy Blood In My Veins
6. Way of Warriors - Hymn To Immortals
7. Eternity of Blood
8. Burning Bridges Becomes Ashes

To Forgotten Path… starts with four songs from 2009’s Mighty Black Inner Flame and like that album, the opener is instrumental song Forgotten Hope. Starting with an instrumental song is always a bold move for a band, but it actually sets off the compilation well with a rousing build-up. It’s also instantly obvious that the re-recording process has worked in Deviator’s favour, as the sound is bigger and clearer. Thankfully though Deviator’s rawness hasn’t fully disappeared and with Might Black Inner Flame, it comes through loud and clear as the bands black metal takes hold. Whereas Astarium yesterday was textured and more mournful at times, Deviator projects an icier image. That coldness follows on into Undying Darkness. The majority of this song is instrumental, but it does contain a few blasts of Lord Hastner’s black metal bark.

The final re-worked track from Mighty Black Inner Flame, Raw Symphony of Sorry, benefits from increased volume thanks to the production and mastering job. It makes it sound more threatening and it’s the only other instrumental song on the compilation, which means the second half of the album is hate-fuelled black metal, right to the very end. Thy Blood In My Veins is the final re-recorded track and featured on the 2010 full length Voice of The Native Blood. The vocals here are very different to that of previous songs, with them being almost spoken at time, with a strange effect running through the mic.

The final three songs all appeared on Fehu-Fohat-Fire that was released in 2012. Lord Hastner uses more of his native tongue on Way of Warrior-Hymn To Immortals and the song does show a progression in his song-writing skills following previous releases. Deviator’s black metal does sound more authentic with the Ukrainian vocals to me and the musicianship during Eternity of Blood makes it the standout track on the compilation, with passages that stray close to post-black metal and even doom at times. 

Deviator ends on a very atmospheric note with Burning Bridges Become Ashes. With the exception of the album’s opener Forgotten Path, all of the songs here stretch to over five minutes, with some even reaching past the seven minute mark, so there is plenty for fans to get their teeth into and as mentioned further up, the re-recording has helped brings out some subtleties in the earlier songs, but the compilation does feel like a stop-gap release and I for one am hoping that Deviator brings something more original out in the near future. 

You can hear some of Deviator's work on the bands website here - http://hastner.wix.com/black-flame

You can purchase this compilation from Pesttanz Klangsmiede at the below link -
http://www.pesttanz.com/shop/en/productions--distribution/productions/cds

Deviator Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/DeviatorOfficial-Heathen-Epic-BlackDeath-Metal