Album review: Wulfseer – Ritual Master
Artist: Wulfseer
Title: Ritual Master
Label: Independent
Release date: February 16th, 2025
Country: Finland
Format reviewed: High-quality digital recording
Album review: Wulfseer – Ritual Master by #Pegah
“Ritual Master” is a dark, ritualistic, and medieval ambient album by Finnish artist Wulfseer. Listening to this album feels like experiencing a ritual an ominous, otherworldly one. It pulls you into a realm of shadows, evoking a deep connection with darkness. The cover art reinforces this sensation, depicting a skeletal phantom against a black background, with touches of red resembling flames suggesting an initiation into something arcane and powerful.
The album opens with an eerie humming, as if summoning the gods of the underworld for a grand ritual. This sets the tone for what follows. The next track, “Phantom Cargo”, introduces a dynamic and slightly stressful soundscape, layered with sounds that evoke feelings of fear, urgency, and foreboding. The addition of haunting voices gives it a cinematic edge, making it feel as if spectral entities are swirling around the listener. “Invitation of the Ancient Gods” begins with whispers from multiple unseen figures, soon joined by the cries of ravens and eerie laughter. The presence of a violin intensifies the atmosphere, heightening the sense of fear. The variety of sounds paints a vivid scene it’s not just music, but a sensory experience. “Ritual Master” plunges us directly into the heart of the ritual. Now fully immersed, we hear the sounds rising, breaking through a stormy night. Thunder crashes, merging seamlessly with the ritualistic chants, as if nature itself is part of the ceremony. The ominous tone continues with “GravePassion”. The track’s opening is deeply unsettling, as if foreshadowing an impending event. The emphasis on the word “grave” suggests themes of despair, longing, or perhaps a scene of pursuit in a haunted graveyard.
“BloodMoon” takes inspiration from a total lunar eclipse, a symbol of death and transformation. Imagine standing beneath a sky where the moon is completely obscured, as glossolalia (unintelligible chanting) fills the air—this is the experience of the track. The atmosphere shifts midway, becoming more mystical, but a sudden thunderclap marks a dramatic return to the ritualistic ambiance. It’s as if the voices surrounding you are pulling you deeper into an abyss, urging you to embrace your hidden emotions grief, darkness, and ultimately, catharsis. A moment of contrast comes with “Fatal Morgana”.It begins with a sense of relief peaceful, even meditative. Yet, this tranquility is fleeting. The soundscape shifts, dominating the atmosphere for a brief moment before fading away, as if swallowing all sounds into silence.
“Conjuring Leviathan”, is the longest track. It begins with whispers and the sound of water, evoking an underground, shadowy space. The ritualistic intensity builds, with layered sounds that feel carefully placed rather than chaotic. As the track reaches its conclusion, the water sounds return this time, as if footsteps are treading through it, symbolizing transformation. The album closes with “Return Of The Wolves”, the only track featuring lyrics. It centers on “Fenrir”, the monstrous wolf of Norse mythology, a being that embodies chaos, destruction, and the untamed forces of nature. The soundscape reflects this turbulence through layered elements male chanting, a haunting female voice, various musical instruments, and the howls of wolves beneath a full moon. It feels like the climax of the ritual, the moment of culmination. As the man chants *“Rise, Fenrir, rise,”* there’s a sense of finality as if he is calling upon the wolf to end the ritual.
“Ritual Master” is a masterfully crafted journey through darkness, offering a deeply immersive experience for fans of ritual ambient and cinematic soundscapes. Wulfseer’s ability to blend layered textures, eerie voices, and dynamic shifts in the atmosphere creates an album that feels like both an invocation and an initiation. Whether you listen in solitude or as part of a meditative descent into the subconscious, this album lingers, haunting long after the final note fades. 8/10
8/10 To Greatness and Glory!
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