Review: “Sword of Virné” by Chronicler of Ardul

Armed with a Bachelor’s of Arts in Song writing and Producing from Berklee Online, Richland Washington native David Williams started a project called Chronicler of Ardul to tell tales of dark fantasy in a thematic and story driven style. The multi instrumentalist lyricist who paints his pictures in Symphonic Death Metal style found session vocalist Thomas Blanc of Zombestial fame and together they released debut EP “Myrewood” in November 2023. Drawing influence from the likes of Shadow of Intent and Mental Cruelty in the metal world, while also taking inspiration from Japanese composer Nobuo Uematsu, that first piece of the puzzle was a blend of ethereal orchestration, thundering metal instrumentation and raw anguished harsh vocals…

A dance macabre of rich orchestration cleanses the mind and builds the anticipation before the guitars rise up from the black depths and the cautionary tale of “Durmad, The Ambitious” truly begins. A man frustrated by his magical education searches for the power of what is forbidden is told the the eyes of Blanc, who sounds very much like a man possessed by demons from other realm of existence. He has several distinctive voices, the caustic shriller tones bringing the almost feral screams of Gollum to mind. The orchestration adds a glorious depth and texture to the sound with an obvious line of comparison to bands like Winds Of Plague, however this is Symphonic Death Metal and there are no core elements on display. Instead the tale unfolds in spellbinding fashion with a dark grace to it before ending on a sombre, gloomy note. Blanc finds within his soul some brutal death growls as “The Forge” plays out, clever use of a second vocal layer to bolster the vocals giving them that little bit more bite. Sinister guitars keep you on the edge of your seat, the only minor issue being that the cymbals on the programmed drums sound a little flat.

As captivating as the first cut, the second maintains the momentum with that cinematic quality infused into everything, something which makes it stand out like a hammer smashed thumb (in a good way). Title track “Sword of Virné” has orchestration that feels like it would have been at home in 18th century Vienna, although Blanc would probably have been burned at the steak for witchcraft with his caustic vocals. Lush, dark atmospherics are stunning while the aggression in the guitars gives everything a solid spine and if one of these songs appeared during scenes in Game of Thrones or The Witcher it wouldn’t be out of place. The final piece is the instrumental overture that is “What Ambition Reaps“, a track of epic majesty that sounds incomplete as just when your brain tells you the barbed riff attack should begin, it finishes as if to tease us about what is to come. Williams deserves a lot of credit for not only his vision but his ambition to bring this project to life and if he can use this record to find himself a drummer of flesh and bone then the sky is the limit [8/10]

1. Durmad, The Ambitious
2. The Forge
3. Sword of Virné
4. What Ambition Reaps (Bonus Track)

“Sword of Virné” by Chronicler of Ardul is out 16th August 2024 and available over at bandcamp