Husband and wife ATMOSPHERIC CELTIC METAL duo HAND OF KALLIACH meld a passion for Metal music with traditional Scottish folk elements.
Instead of using traditional instruments they draw inspiration from the rhythms, time signatures and patterns used in folk music and adapt them for distorted guitars:
“We’re both extremely excited to be releasing our debut full-length, ‘Samhainn‘. Named after the ancient Celtic festival of winter (pronounced ‘Sah-win’), this album represents a huge gear change in our writing and production from our initial work, bringing a darker and more aggressive energy to our hybrid sound of Melodeath and Folk Metal.”
The name HAND OF KALLIACH, comes from the legend of the ‘Cailleach‘, a Scottish witch god of winter – and in mythology one tale holds that she sleeps at the bottom of an enormous whirlpool in Corryvreckan, off the western isles of Scotland where John’s family is from, arising to usher in winter.
HAND OF KALLIACH‘s music focuses on dual concepts of benevolence and malevolence, all against the backdrop of the history, mythology and land/seascapes of the Scottish islands.
The duo delivers a powerful sound from the contrast of Sophie’s ethereal vocals to John’s harsh gutturals, and the dynamic surrounding instrumentation. Intense distorted guitar and bass tones ground the music while haunting melodies and motifs break through the wall of sound.
“Samhainn” is an epic release creatively reimagining the folk style with a powerhouse of Melodic Metal. From the haunting opening of “Beneath Starlit Waters”, to the darkly serene soundscape of “The Lull Of Loch Uigeadail”, before concluding with the dramatic intensity of “Return To Stone”, “Samhainn” is a voyage of discovery not to be missed.
Read our review here.
