Genre: Neofolk / Experimental

The War Office of Propaganda continues it mission of fueling the fires of the post industrial music arena with yet another innovative release from their Polish based label title “Son of Eris.” “Son of Eris” continues the WOP's mission of discovering and promoting new and coming musicians who are producing the next generation of post industrial music. “Son of Eris” takes its place amidst the other WOP discoveries as a new and upcoming band that is seizing the scene with a blend of neofolk and experimental sounds that break new ground and explore previously unheard musical territory.

“Son of Eris” is a reference to the Greek Goddess of discord famed for her negative influence upon both men and gods in Greek mythology. When the Trojans invited Eris to attend a wedding amidst their people what followed was a historical disaster for the Trojan people which eventually led to their destruction. The son of Eris is the God Strife whom most of us would also see as an unwanted guest in our lives.

“Son of Eris” the band is formed around a young German musician and the music is in its own right centered largely on melancholic and shadowed guitar compositions. “Son of Eris” set themselves apart from the horde of neofolk bands currently charming listeners by introducing a completely new sound that is based little if any upon the forever popular Teutonic tradition and Northern European mythology. It is hard to think of neofolk music without references to Odin and other Teutonic deities coming to mind but “Son of Eris” has successfully made the break from the herd and has stricken out into new territory with their debut self titled album.

“Son of Eris” reaches out beyond the barriers of the established neofolk genre and incorporates elements of ambient, noise and even rock influences into their music. The result of this innovative mixture is a collection of song that move effortlessly between varying soundscapes while remaining firmly established around strong and complex guitar playing. The established neofolk acoustic guitar is complimented and at some point replaced by innovative electric guitar playing that lends the music a distinct and individual sound amidst its peers. The addition of an acoustic drum set and a heavy dose of electronic ambience and even dissonant noise elements transports music of “Son of Eris into previously unheard dimensions of experimental neoflk music.

“Son of Eris” begins with the introductory song “Brecht Mit Dem Konig.” “Brecht Mit Dem Konig” begins with beautiful guitar chords that are separate by the speakers giving the music an excellent stereo sound as the guitar bounces between speakers before merging in unison. The crystalline guitar is joined briefly by growling before the male vocal bring lyrics to bear upon the music. The male vocals are melancholic and down trodden in the very best tradition of dark folk. Electronic ambience stutters and spurts out towards the horizon as the guitar leads the song forward. In between vocal recitals horse whispering and the play of electronic sounds fill the gaps along with controlled electric guitar feedback. The mood is shadowy and invokes images of coming upon a lone lonely minstrel playing his songs and plying his craft to for a court of gathering shades at dusk.

Track 3 on “Son of Eris” is titled “Rising.” “Rising” begins with glimmering and echoing electronics that mimic a series of church bells ringing in unison. After this brief intro bass guitar and electric guitar are brought to bear alongside a drum set. The deep bass strumming of the electric bass and the crisp guitar playing merge in a dark, watery dream of sound that easily lulls the listener under the influence of “Son of Eris's” spell. The drums offer minimal rhythmic support as the snare is played with a brush and the cymbals sound sparsely. Half way through the song heavy guitar feedback is brought to bare cloudy the dreamy pool further and pulling listener ever deeper into the inky well of sadness. Once the listener is hooked and tangled the drums intensify and deepen and the guitar surges forwarded added direction to the murky depths. The lyrics are deeply imbedded and only really become clear for part of the song but this is less important as the music surges forth like a tidal wave breaking across the listener in dark ecstatic waves. “Rising” builds into a megalith of sound that is strongly emotive and completely consuming before loosing the listener into the remnants of their seared mind.

The eighth song on “Son of Eris” is titled “Nero.” Giving a song the title of “Nero” who has to be one of the most infamous characters in history is a lot to live up to. “Nero” was reputed to hang Christians in his garden after soaking them in oil. Upon hanging these persons “Nero” would have them lit like torches to illuminate his feasts and gardens. “Nero” breaks the dreamy spell of previous songs with the introduction of serious militarist drums that are beat upon in such a manner that will leave souls of the aforementioned dead trembling in fear of Nero's return. The thundering drums are injected with momentary lapses of harsh static and secondary drumming that launches the song into very martial territory. This play of drums and static builds quite a substantial musical foundation before industrial noises and voice join the fray. The music turns on a dime shifting shape and opening itself to lyrical content that basically involves some harshly spoken word commentary. Interrupted organs can be heard dropping in and out of the song as the fury and energy of the song continue to build all the while being driven by incredibly power drums. Just when the music reaches a heathenistic climatic peak everything suddenly winds down as if the marching armies of Nero the music invokes were but dreams of ghosts.

‘Son of Eris” is a very worthy album being offered for a very affordable price. If you are looking for something dark and folk infused that will aim you in a previously unknown musical direction then do not hesitate to get this album. War Office of Propaganda keep their releases to limited numbers and it is only a matter of time until the rest of the industrial music world discovers this label and their amazing finds and hordes them all. “Son of Eris” is poised to become a mainstay in the neofolk scene and I strongly encourage you to discover them before it costs you a fortune to secure a copy of this album off of EBay. Fans of neofolk take note; this is the next generation of neofolk music!