Ignea & Ersedu – Bestia

Ignea & Ersedu
Bestia
October 21^st, 2021
Playing time: 38:37

The two Ukrainian bands Ignea and Ersedu have been friends for ten years (or the singers of both bands?). While Ignea have already succeeded in touring Europe, their compatriots might be rather less known. Frontwoman Helle Bogdanova and her guys recently landed a record deal with the Austrian label Napalm Records. Maybe this EP will give Ersedu a boost in popularity. Anyway, here the music lover can hear the result of this long-lasting friendship. Each of the bands contributed two songs. In addition, there is a duet by both singers. And as a special treat, there is an orchestral mix of the five songs on this EP.

“Bosorkun” is a typical Ignea song, as you know them from their albums and live performances. After a symphonic intro, the riffs slam into your ears. And Helle shows that she feels perfectly at home with both the growls and the beautiful clear vocals. The musicians go at a fast pace. According to Ukrainian mythology, Bosorkun is an evil mountain spirit. Magura, on the other hand, is a Slavic Valkyrie, the daughter of the thunderer Perun. “Magura’s Last Kiss” receives the warriors on the battlefield so that after their death they can enter Vyriy, the heavenly palace for eternal life. Accordingly, a certain amount of sensuality can be heard here, especially in the breathed vocal/speech passages. In the video for “Mermaids” you can admire the two singers against the backdrop of the Caspian Sea. And both can growl beautifully angry and harsh. To Far Eastern sounds. After this epic duet, Ersedu take over. “Black Garden” tells the story of the Ukrainian dragon Zmiy. He can destroy gardens and lands, but also avert disaster from people. The song has a correspondingly dual structure. You can literally hear the vastness of the country. And the front woman of Ersedu masters both harsh growls and elf-like clear vocals. In “The Eaters of The Sun” you can also clearly hear the ambivalence of good and evil, light and darkness. The monumental “The Symphony of Bestia” is the already mentioned orchestral mix. Here epic orchestral passages from the five songs of the EP are put together and processed into an epic instrumental masterpiece. Here it is worth using a good sound output (headphones, HiFi system) and turning it up really loud.

Listening to “Bestia” is simply fun. It makes you wish you could see both bands live on a joint tour. I’m not usually a fan of split EPs. But “Bestia” is simply top class. I would like to have more releases like this.

Ignea feat. Ersedu – Mermaids (Official Music Video): https://youtu.be/YU9WFEwsQQw

Lineup:

Ignea:

Helle Bogdanova – Vocals
Yevhenii Zhytniuk – Keyboards
Xander Kamyshin – Bass
Ivan Kholmohorov – Drums
Dmitry Vinnichenko – Guitars

Ersedu:

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Track list:

• Bosorkun (Ignea)
• Magura’s Last Kiss (Ignea)
• Mermaids (Ignea, Ersedu)
• Black Garden (Ersedu)
• The Eaters Of The Sun (Ersedu)
• The Symphony Of Bestia (Ignea, Ersedu)