KAWIR : “Kydoimos” (ревю и премиера)

With more than 30 years experience, Greek black metal horde Kawir is  among the names that truly inspire with their old-school melodiousness, raw energy and relentless live performances. With eight full-length albums under their belt and another looming over the darkness waiting to conquer the world at any moment, the band have established legendary status and need no introduction – the wind of time speaks for itself about the exploits of each of  its members in the ranks of the bands , and individually.

“Kydoimos” (“Κυδοιμοσ”) is Kawir’s ninth full-length album, which will be released in a matter of hours on April 19th via Soulseller Records. In ten anthems soaked in enemy blood with a total duration of about 52 minutes, the musicians draw out their purest magic from the cauldrons and transport us to the world of the evil spirits of Greek mythology, who dedicated their existence to death and war. Kydoimos is the personification of the cacophony and misery of battle. He is usually referred to as the son of Eris, the goddess of  strife, and he appears in many key ancient texts. The most important of these is the Iliad, where he is mentioned as adorning the shield of Achilles with his mother and Cer (Κίρ.), and in three of the pieces in the album there is dedicated some  special attention to this line. Kydoimos is also mentioned as adorning the shield of Heracles in the work of Hesiod, and is generally presented as an important element in the study of ancient warfare. With a theme like this one,  it should already be clear to you that the vibe of this album is going to be intriguing… to say the least.

Ambient forest sounds and epic instrumentals hit us in the album’s first track, “Teiresias (ΤΕΙΡΕΣΙΑΣ)”. With beautiful keyboards and synths, brought to the fore bass and fast drums, the instrumental itself is an epic Hellenic soundtrack, which with Porphyrion’s vocals sounds chilling – the emotional charge in them is traditionally vulcanic and haunts the space effortlessly.

Kawir deliver a specific ancient atmosphere in their work, which sounds epic and pagan, but at the same time imbued with weight, raising above the ethereal melodies with a  mighty wall of aggressive, beastly vocals, charged with fiery energy.
You’ll hear this in “Teiresias (ΤΕΙΡΕΣΙΑΣ)” as well as in the next nine tracks on the album, as although they all share a common theme, they manage to differ from each other  a bit in terms of composition, tempo and atmosphere.
Some of the songs are dominated by calmer and atmospheric instrumentals with Hellenistic motifs, relying on the effect of synthesizers and the appearance of special instruments – the authentic sound of the flute can be heard in the track “Fields Of Flegra (ΦΛΕΓΡΑΣ ΠΕΔΙΟΝ)”, for example, where at the end of the piece the atmosphere is extremely ethereal and fascinating.
Other compositions are a real fire and even at times a real cacophony, which grab your attention  from the very beginning with their aggression and sometimes add a dose of theatrical passion to their massive brutal arsenal (“Myrmidons (ΜΥΡΜΙΔΟΝΕΣ)”, “Achilles & Hector (ΑΧΙΛΛΕΑΣ ΚΑΙ ΕΚΤΟΡΑΣ) )”, “Echetlaeus (ΕξΕΤΛΑΙΟΣ)”).
Others, like the song “Hecatonchires” featuring Jim Mutilator, seem to take the best of both worlds and combine the emotional brute charge with the ethereal atmosphere in a perfect symbiosis that holds the attention with the interesting change of moods.

Distinctive elements are not lacking in the album, as besides the authentic flute sound that we can hear in several of the tracks, there is also a great performance with Floyd Rose in “Myrmidons (ΜΥΡΜΙΔΟΝΕΣ)”, for example, which adds a rebellious energy to the record. Kicks are also quite noticeable and brought to the fore in most tracks, adding a certain punchy feeling to the aural picture.
I especially liked the title track “Kydoimos (ΚΥΔΟΙΜΟΣ)”, which starts with beautiful synths that continue throughout the length of the track and the sheer malice in the  vocals there – it completely recreates the spirit of Kydoimos and his warlike nature.
As  Heracles said, ‘War is father of all, and king of all. He renders some gods, others men; he makes some slaves, others free.’, and with their final song, “War Is The Father Of All (ΠΟΛΕΜΟΣ ΠΑΝΤΩΝ),” the Hellenic legends sum up their epic narrative, sending it off with a raven cry.

“Kydoimos” (“Κυδοιμοσ”) could  be defined as an epic poem in black metal form that honors the forgotten heritage and Hellenic mythology. Wandering through the world of war and the ancient atmospheres of the Iliad, Kawir turn each individual story into a battle hymn – a demonstration of three decades of expertise in their own black metal craft.

The premeire of the album will take place soon, follow it here:

Album: “Kydoimos” (“Κυδοιμοσ”) 
Band: KAWIR
Release Date: April 19th, 2024
Label: Soulseller Records
Pre-order link: https://bit.ly/48thv1X