A passion project of 3 years, Windmill have released their shattering folk metal debut Dance of Fire and Freedom. Now I know when I hear folk metal, many sounds cross through my mind. Will they go the Amorphis route? Maybe Korpiklaani? In my opinion I'd say the biggest influence I'm hearing from Windmill is Eluvietie, which is by no means a detriment to them. While they may be influenced by folk metal veterans, Windmill have obviously crafted their own twist and have delivered a fresh, inviting and exciting LP to us.
The Polish quartet doesn't limit themselves to folklore tales, they see them more as a jumping off point. "Our lyrics touch upon various subjects, we never focus on one specific topic or pattern. Because folk is not only the music, but a whole culture," from their Facebook page. This is good, because as you probably know if you're reading this, folk metal has a danger of becoming stale when bands continue to recycle the same century old stories over and over.
This does bring me to a good time to bring up a good point; their lyrics are (almost) entirely in the Polish language. While that may steer some away from the music, it helps myself to appreciate the album, vocals and instrumentation, as a whole rather than nitpicking the lyrical themes apart entirely. If you wanted to take some of their lyrics and run them through a translator, it doesn't have quite the same punch, but the themes you find are quite beautiful and oftentimes dark.
All that to say, Dance of Fire and Freedom is a lot of fun to hear! There's shanties, head bangers, foot stompers and all around good shit. Have a listen of their single Taniec Ognia i Wolności below:
I recommend Windmill to anyone who is looking for a fun time, and as always if you like what you hear be sure to check out their music and give them support!
Windmill is:
Dominik Wojowski – Bass, Vocals
Bartek Menażyk - Guitars
Marysia Mazur – Drums
Jan "Dice" Kowalski – Tin Whistle, Bouzouki, Acoustic Guitars, Synths, Jaw Harp, Vocals
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