{"id":8892,"date":"2022-12-06T16:57:16","date_gmt":"2022-12-06T15:57:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kessel-tamerus.nl\/Esthers_Blog\/?p=8892"},"modified":"2025-11-30T11:49:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T10:49:30","slug":"gandalfs-fist-widdershins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kessel-tamerus.nl\/Esthers_Blog\/cd-recensie\/gandalfs-fist-widdershins\/","title":{"rendered":"Gandalf’s Fist \u2013 Widdershins"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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English prog rock band Gandalf’s Fist was formed in 2005 by multi-instrumentalist Dean Marsh and lyricist Luke Severn. The lyrics on “Widdershins” deal with superstition and the human experience. This theme is thousands of years old, but still exists in our digital age. Their prog rock is a blend of New Wave, symphony, metal and Renaissance folk .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Sacrament’ starts with acoustic guitar and piano sounds. You might feel the sudden turn to an up-tempo piece approaching. The music runs back and forth through the headphones nicely. There is nice organ playing and fans recognize the style of Gandalf’s Fist in both vocals and music. Vocal parts are interspersed with instrumentals, these include lovely guitar playing cool drumming. The word “Halleluiah” is repeated several times, meanwhile the music remains exhilarating. The sounds of string instruments occasionally mingle in the background. This opening track ends rather abruptly. The music in ‘Widdershins’ is calm; the high, rather soft and vocals fit in well with it. Tempo and volume increase slightly. Light classical elements mix nicely with the rest of the music. The relationship between melody and rhythm is fine. The minimalist part with compelling guitar playing is nice. Several more changes follow, at the end there is a surprising minimalist piece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘The Haruspex’ starts with a pleasantly long instrumental part in which you hear all kinds of mysterious sounds and details. There is a good interplay between light Arabic influences and rock. Again there are several tempo and volume changes, at times the tempo is quite high. This contrasts with the quiet start of ‘Dreamcatcher’. The vocals are somewhat sweet at first, but slowly become more intense. The compelling guitar playing forms a good harmony with everything.
In ‘Wisp’ there are quite a few instruments to be heard such as double bass, Irish bagpipes, flutes and cello, these are played by guest musicians. This is one of the songs where folk can be clearly heard. Every song is different, for example ‘Man of Signs’, where Luke Severn, with his very own vocal color, has the lead vocals. ‘Witchmonger’ is about the persecution and burning of witches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Cave’ is the longest song ‘Gandalf’s Fist’ has ever written. This epic starts with crackling sounds and mysterious music. Then there is a turn to more power. The words are powerfully sung, but not always easy to understand. Vocals and music remain in balance, because when the music becomes a little quieter, the vocals go with it. There are quite a few transitions in this last song. It ranges from acoustic guitar playing to hectic, and “everything” in between. Like rocking guitar playing, bold bass grooves, and so on. There is also some sampling added, such as the ringing of a (church) bell. In addition, you can hear various wind instruments such as oboe and clarinet. One time emotion can be heard in the vocals, another time the vocals have a somewhat sweet sound. For a moment the song seems to end, but it is a twist. Just before the end you hear the warm, emotional sounds of a real (viola) violin, and cello.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Widdershins’ is not a narrative album, but it consists out of individual songs, which makes the album more accessible to be listened to more frequently. The lyrics are not really meant for singing along, but of course you can. Instrumentally, there is a lot of variety, not only because of the large number of instruments, but also the way they are played. This album by Gandalf’s Fist will also be enjoyed by prog rock fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(79\/100) (Nightkeeper Productions)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social media<\/strong>:
Website: Gandalf’s Fist<\/a>
Facebook: Gandalf’s Fist<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

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