Summoning

Still a two-piece, Summoning have always managed to compose grandiose, theatrical metal on a scale well beyond their means, and Old Mornings Dawn might is their grandest accomplishment yet. Silenius and Protector spend about an hour piling layer upon layer of synthesized flutes, horns and strings onto their surprisingly temperate black metal base. The result is LARP metal done on Peter Jackson's scale, with only fraction of his budget. What's always differentiated Summoning from their peers is their unseasonably warm sound, which on Old Mornings Dawn is more percussive than ever, at times bordering on tribal-sounding ("Flammifer"). Its lush soundscapes manage to dampen even the cheesiest-sounding keyboards ("Old Mornings Dawn," "Caradhras"), building themselves well beyond allusions to Burzum's unfortunate-sounding prison releases. Old Mornings Dawn is Summoning at the top of their class, turning out yet another album that matches grandiosity with poise, groove and the occasional emotional gut-punch.