“Tavastland” is an ultimate majestic oeuvre dedicated to the Pagan heroes. The album’s opening track “Kuolematon Laulunhenki” reflects the vehemence. It begins with the bursting tide of riffs that define the epic composition. The Finns managed to strike with fluidity from, the well-fired drums and the endless stream of powerful riffs encased in triumphant black metal rasps.

The genre fusion can be seen in the multi-layered epic melodies, which sound even darker on “Yönsynty”. The guitar melodies highlight the atmospheric passages of the music and the focus on vibrant textures. On top of this there are plenty of keyboard sections while the vocals embrace the black metal roots there is something epic regarding the strumming acoustic guitar and clean chanting booming with glorious melodies.

The music lifts you through the lush atmosphere and powerful drumming and at times, the song contrasts with complex guitar patterns, for example, “Havukruunu ja Talvenvarjo” meanders into a thundering transition of the blasting drums, however, there are no fillers as each song features excessive tremolo pickings.

Havukruunu offers it all on its fourth studio album; the guitar work is flawlessly executed with layered leads, catchy melodies, and rich song arrangements.

The atmospheric appeal on the album is of high quality and thus Havukruunu explores pagan sound structures, this isn’t to say that the songs have a long duration. On the contrary, most of the songs on the album are about five to six minutes long and are laden with guitar arrangements to capture the essence by carving epic melodies and the bombarding percussion drives the song onwards in cinematic passages.

The creative songwriting is evident in the acoustic sections filled with intricate lead guitars that explode from blistering solos to gloomier black metal. The song “Tavastland” builds on the darker and scathing sound of Havukruunu, the drumming on this track explodes like a wall of sound, and there are plenty of double kicks.

The chilling riffs of Scandinavian black metal seep into grandiose folk moments to provide multi-layered choirs where the atmosphere shifts into an ethereal and folkish trademark of Finnish black metal.

The aggression is very present on the album and the melodies are catchy, and sometimes the black metal snarls combine clean chanting vocals and tremolo-picked riffs that bring Havukruunu to an epic level of songwriting.

“Kuoleman Oma” is even catchier and full of melodic riffs, the opening theme of this song features some beautiful orchestral work and acoustic guitars which begins with a dark, atmospheric feeling that is somehow reminiscent of Árstíðir Lífsins.

The perfect blending of folkish themes and black metal implies the rich inspiration of the band and its pedestal, with the rich acoustic sections and synth that serve as a backdrop. The one aspect that shows how the Finns fuse bombastic melodies and tempo variations in the songs “Unissakävijä” and “Kun veri sekoittuu lumeen” are epic pagan folk experiences.

The song structure is beautiful and evocative, but the drumming gives the song another diversity by combining the slow icy riffs and the musical progression that explores subtle themes. Yet Havukruunu maintains the atmospheric theme, venturing deeply into the cold nature and beautiful landscapes for almost an hour of a long journey.

The album ends with a ten-minute epic track “De Miseriis Fennorum” showcasing the upbeat Viking riffs, and folkish themes to provide a perfect balance of clean vocals and progressive synth sections combined with harsh black metal vocals. The vibe of majesty manages to strike a chord across the time length of fifty minutes, bringing the creative side of the band and triumphant pagan black metal riffs.

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