Hammers of Misfortune - The Bastard

I tackled another album today, and decided to write a blog because of how strange it was. It was nothing completely new and unheard of, which is why it was so odd to me. It was a rehash of several genres of metal -- a sort of progressive bend to folk/power/doom/black metal. But at the same time, it felt so fresh, even though nothing completely original had been explored on this release, but it didn't matter. It was really solid anyway.

It was Hammer of Misfortune's The Bastard. I suppose I was drawn to this album because the first and second tracks are both great hooks, as well as the fact that I looked it up and found that it was a concept album. After studying the lyrics, this 14-song (a lot for this type of epic metal) metal-opera had a surprisingly complex story.

Act I:
The Bastard, who seems to be half-tree half-man and hates mankind, awakens the great dragon goddess in a dream to ask her about how he was born. She tells him that his villainous father left him to die in a battle. He had to fight for his life. His father destroyed an entire village, and now sits on the throne. The Bastard must kill him to get the throne himself. The tyrant is traveling down the road when The Bastard stands in his way. The king tells him if he doesn't move, he'll be killed. Act I ends with the anthemic "You Should Have Slain Me", in which the Bastard finally threatens to exact revenge on his father. A prophecy is said by the surrounding villagers:
"When the Ax is freed from hell
A single stroke shall break the spell
When the Ax is free again
A brutal reign shall meet its end"

Act II:
The Bastard has journeyed far and wide to seek the Ax of the prophecy. The earth all of a sudden gives way and swallows him, sending him deep into Hell. The Dragon-goddess, now in person instead of in his mind, Ax in hand, asks the Bastard his business. He requests the Ax. She tells him that he must promise to do whatever she asks if she gives it to him, no matter what. He swears and takes the Ax. The track "The Blood Ax Speaks" seems to be an ominous intro for the weapon, its lust for blood has waited seven thousand years to claim another life. The Bastard immediately returns to his father, killing all of his guards and finally him with the bloodthirsty weapon. Act II: draws to a close with the children of the forest dancing and rejoicing, for the tyrant's reign has come to an end. When it seems like everything is through, we have a twist.

Act III:
The short and aptly titled track "The Prophecy Has Two Meanings" has some of the most cryptic lyrics on the album:
"This prophecy has two meanings you see
There is:
One for the Boatman, one for the stream
One for the dreamer, and one for the dream
One for the victim, and one for the blade
One for the blood, and the sacrifice made"

Meanwhile, the Bastard sits on his throne, but desires only to go back into the forest where he belongs. The people want a king, and he knows it can't be him. The Dragon-goddess returns for the favor that she was promised when she gave up the Blood-Ax. She orders the Bastard to simply cut down one tree and she will be appeased. He curses her, saying that he'll do it, but he'll take his own life when he's done. When he does it, the sacrifice (mentioned in "The Prophecy Has Two Meanings") is made, and the forest is uprooted, the spell that kept them stationery, gone. It appears that the Dragon-goddess knew all along that a sacrifice needed to be made. The trees and rocks all get up and slay all of the men in their path, for they hate the way that men desecrate the forest that's sacred to them (for lumber, for meat). In Act III's final track, it is realized that for the people of the forest, freeing the Ax wouldn't end the cursed reign of the Tyrant, but of mankind itself. The Bastard sits on his throne as the ones made of wood, wind, and stone slay his kingdom, sparing everything non-human. He wonders why, since these people are his people, he doesn't feel compelled to stop the slaughter. He is told by his new subjects that he is one of them, and in fact, is their god and always has been. He has a void to fill in heaven.

It appears as though the Dragon-goddess knew this all along, and only told him that he was the son of the Tyrant so that he would break the spell. Perhaps she created him in the first place.

It's interesting that Hammers of Misfortune only has two vocalists, but the somehow make a discernable difference in the speaking voices on each character. The Bastard is voiced with a deep and hearty voice by the male singer. The Dragon-goddess is voiced by the girl singer in an operatic tone. The Tyrant is done with harsh vocals by the male singer. The townspeople are a male and female chorus. The Blood-Ax's voice is a combination of clean female vocals and harsh male vocals. The trolls of the woodlands are a chorus of harsh vocals.

I also like the fact that a certain riff accompanies the dragon-goddess whenever she speaks.

All-in-all, great story and great music. 9/10.