Helfir/The Journey/My Kingdom Music/2020 CD Review

 

  Italy's  solo  project  Helfir  has  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  shows  the  music  going  for  more  of  a  mixture  of  dark  rock  and  gothic  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2020  album  "The  Journey"  which  was  released  by  My  Kingdom  Music.

  Programmed  electronic  beats  and  atmospheric  sounding  keyboards  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  clear  goth  rock  style  vocals  a  few  seconds  later.  Clean  guitars  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  along  with  one  track  also  introducing  operatic  female  vocals  into  the  music  and  acoustic  guitar's  are  also  utilized  at  times.

  When  electric  guitars  are  added  into  the  music  they  also  add  in  the  heaviness  of  goth  metal  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.  Some  of  the  slower  riffing  also  adds  in  a  touch  of  doom  metal  along  with  all  of  the  songs  sounding  different  from  each  other  which  also  gives  the  album  a  lot  more  diversity.

  folk  instruments  and  nature  sounds  can  also  be  heard  briefly  along  with a  couple  of  tracks  also  adding  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  as  well  as  the  music  also  getting  very  atmospheric  and  progressive  sounding  at  times  and  all  of  the songs  also  stick  to  a  slower  direction,  growls  and  demonic  voices  can  also  be  heard  briefly.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  melancholic  and  esoteric  themes.   

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  album  from  Helfir  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  dark  rock  and  gothic  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Game"  "Clouds"  "Traces  Of  You"  and  "Silent  Path".  8  out  of  10.

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Helfir/The Human Defeat/My Kingdom Music/2017 CD Review

  Helfir  are  a  solo  project  from  Italy  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  dark  rock  and goth  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "The  Human  Defeat"  which  will  be  released  in June  by  My  Kingdom  Music.

   Electronic  music  sounds  along  with  some  clean  playing  starts  off  the  album before adding  in  a  more  heavy  goth  and  doom  metal  style  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  melodic  guitar  leads  as  well  as  some  death  metal  growls  being  utilized  at times  and  you  can  also  hear  a  lot  or  melody  in  the  riffing.

  Melodic  singing  is  also  used  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  along  with  a  great  amount  of  acoustic  guitars  while  some  tracks  also  use  whispered vocals  while  a  great  amount  of  the  tracks  add  in  elements  of  neo  folk  and  a  couple  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Helfir  expands  on  the  acoustic  dark  rock  style  of his  previous  release  while  adding  in  elements  of  goth,  death  and  doom  metal  to  create  something  different,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Helfir  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  neo  folk,  dark  rock  and  goth  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  8  out  of  10.

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Helfir Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and musical project?
The name HELFIR is the summary of artistic life of Luca Mazzotta. The project stems from the need to undertake a delicate trip in the ego that acts as a real catharsis for the artist.

2.In April you have a new album  coming out, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
The sound of "Still Bleeding" is rock, metal but with influences of dark music, celtic and electronic music. The melody in the whole album has a fundamental role and every sound was chosen very carefully.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with your solo material?
The lyrics express anger, resentment and draw pictures of old memories, in short, a bit 'of my life. Also in the lyrics, there is a lot of symbolism which is the continuum of the entire album.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Helfir'?
HELFIR the name comes from a series of concepts that are derived from the culture of northern Europe. Generally does not reveal why the full meaning, but I leave the listener to understand the use of the imagination, through music, what lies behind this name.

5.With this project you record mostly everything by yourself, how would you compare this to working with a full band?
Working with a full band is very difficult, you have to find people who enter into the mood of the compositions. For this reason, I prefer to always look very professional people that can easily reproduce what I have recorded in the studio.
Fortunately I have several years of experience with the bands so do not think it will be difficult to play live the album.

6.Have you done any live shows with your solo project?
Yes, I have already made several live, for example with Antimatter band, playing in acoustic set, some songs. Of course I had to rearrange the guitar sounds by electricity, the drums; all sounded very intimate.

7.On a worldwide level how have your fans reacted to your solo material that have heard it so far?
I can say that for now the answers were always very positive, genre liked and all this made me very happy. Many people have enjoyed the search of the sounds and the melody of the songs.

8.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that you are a part off?
I play with NID, a band in which propose neofolk music; they are great friends so they are realizing that to me is a time of hard work. In all this, however, have not missed all the commitments of this band. I always try to work better with everyone.

9.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?
I hope I can play around a lot, bring my music to as many people as possible. I'm a musician now for about twenty years and this work always makes me so emotional. A musician has always given me a lot of satisfaction and I hope therefore to continue to write music and play live anywhere in the world.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
This is really a good question, very difficult to summarize. I listen to all the music, without exclusion. My favorite genres, the ones that I feel very close to me are the rock, metal and celtic music (played on acoustic guitar). Currently I'm listening to a lot of metal bands (Opeth, Katatonia, Dark Tranquillity, and many records of Doc Watson (a talented musician of bluegrass music).

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
I am a PhD student in Ecology and Climate Change. Besides the music I really love nature, I like to study it and to contribute to help in scientific research. I like then study science, but I really love traveling also. Each trip is for me a huge growth as a human being.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
I wish to thank those who have believed in me, in my music, my friends who have given me so much more strength to go on. I hope that my first album can be a good start for this trip with HELFIR. I would also like to thank the label My Kingdom Music with whom now work, who believed in me and that always shows an incredible professionalism.

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Helfir/Still Bleeding/My Kingdom Music/2015 CD Review

  Helfir  are  a  solo  project  from  Italy  that  plays  decadent  dark  rock  with  some  metal  influences  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2015  album  "Still  Bleeding"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  My  Kingdom  Music.

  Dark  sounding  synths  start  off  the  album  giving  the  music  and  atmospheric  and  ambient  feeling  and  a  few  seconds  later  acoustic  guitars  that  utilize  finger  picking  and  spoken  word  parts  are  added  onto  the  recording  and  the  music  starts  to  get  a  lot  more  powerful  once  the  dark  and  electric  guitars  are  added  onto  the  recording.

  Melodic  guitar  leads  can  be  heard  quite  a  bit  on  the  recording  and  they  also  give  the  music  more  of  a  doom  and  post  metal  feeling  and  on  the  other  tracks  the  acoustic  guitars  also  start  utilizing  full  chords  at  times  and  you  can  also  hear  quite  a  lot  of  clean  singing  vocals  on  most  of  the  tracks  and  some  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  brief  use  of  female  vocals  and  bagpipes  and  there  are  also  a  few  tracks  that  are  long  and  epic  in  length  and  towards  the  end  elements  of  trip  hop  can  be  heard  at  times.  

  Helfir  plays  a  style  of  dark  rock  that  is  mostly  acoustic  but  does  bring  in  the  heaviness  of  metal  at  times  along  with  elements  of  ambient  and  trip  hop  to  create  a  sound  of  his  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and melancholic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Helfir  are  a  very  great  sounding  dark  rock  project  with  some  metal  influences  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "My  Blood"  "Dresses  Of  Pain"  "Portrait  Of  A  Son"  and  "Night  And  Deceit".  8  out  of  10.

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