Some things aren't necessarily associated with Korean (or indeed Asian) culture. Every so often a band comes along that tries to do something different within their own culture, either for better or for worse, some get completely ignored and others manage to make a statement and become pioneers. Widely regarded as a distinctly European (or more specifically, Scandinavian) genre, Viking metal (think power metal for, well, Vikings) has been gaining more and more popularity in Europe with bands such as Týr, Enslaved and Ensiferum winning poisitions at some of Europe's biggest metal festivals.
Newk have taken this distinctly European genre and placed it in Korea. Since their formation in 1993, they have released 3 albums and have managed to become reasonably popular through their live performances. Their third album, Glorious Warrior, was released in November 2007.
The opening track, Into The Battlefield, sets the scene perfects for what is about to come. The gentle guitar parts, the thunder, horse and sword sound effects are all very typical of the genre and its normal subject matter. The track acts as a intro for the first "proper" track Killing Field, which includes a heavier sound without being overpowering. The vocals are somewhat non-threatening but work well with the song as an entity. The chorus has a strangely addictive and subtle melody, which helps the song flow from one part to the next with relative ease. Overall the song includes most of the typical features of the genre: smooth guitar riffs, flowing vocals and, of course, a guitar solo.
The album's title track follows this and contains English lyrics, giving people who don't understand Korean to get a taste of what their lyrics are about for the first time. A chugging guitar riff carries the song throughout with very few changes yet it manages to not become boring due to layers of other guitar work and vocals continually being played over the top.
You shows a slight change in style, it is slower and has a dainty keyboard part being played in the background. This song sounds more progressive than the previous tracks. The following track, Get Up, is more upbeat and vaguely reminiscent of 80s hair metal with regular changes in dynamics and a powerful yet catchy chorus. The theme is carried on throughout the next track, Ordinary Life.
Thunder Rising, as the title would suggest, is a song of epic proportions. To put it into perspective, the song starts with a roar of thunder and only builds from there. The vocals, particularly in the chorus, are some of the most powerful on the album and there's already a guitar solo just over a third of the way through the song. Despite the dramatics, the song flows beautifully and is very easy to listen to.
Gidaryeojwa is not only the first Korean title but is also, on first listen, the first sound to sound like it doesn't quite fit together. Eventually the song manages to iron itself out, or maybe it's just the listener becoming used to it, but there's something about the initial guitar parts that sound discordant. As if suddenly realising what the band were trying to do, after the second or third listen the guitar ceases to be bothersome.
The album ends with a 31 second track entitled Romeo & Julliet. The album might be dramatic overall but this short burst of gentle acoustic guitar somehow seems to be a perfect end to the album bringing some sort of order and balance to the whole thing.
Overall the album is very impressive. They've taken something that would not normally be associated with their language or culture and made it their own. At times it is easy to forget that the band isn't European and is, for at least some of the time, singing in Korean. The vocals may not be as powerful as some of their European counterparts, but the music more than makes up for that and the band would almost certainly be able to play alongside them without sounding average or below par.
