Дракары международного проекта Folkearth продолжают бороздить музыкальные океаны. Меняется состав участников, теплеют мотивы музыки по мере продвижения на юг от первых нордических опусов, но неизменным уже на протяжение четвертого альбома остаются высокое качество материала и его реализации, мастерство сочинителей и исполнителей, а главное – тот душевный накал, нерв и страсть, которые движут музыкантами, живущими и творящими в сотнях и тысячах километров друг от друга. Вот где видишь истинный фанатизм – в самом лучшем смысле слова – в приверженности фолку и металлу, этим двум, казалось бы, абсолютно противоположным (как лед и пламень) составляющим, двум стихиям, из которых соткано само естество Folkearth. Кстати, неудивительно, что ныне кроме духа древних викингов можно явственно различить и музыку средневековой Европы, и даже обнаружить горячие средиземноморские оттенки. В группе (а Folkearth уже можно смело называть группой!) – итальянцы, греки и французы, не считая представителей США, Литвы, Англии и Уэльса, всего же - 20 человек. Изумительное сочетание акустики и электрики, народных, классических и роковых инструментов подчеркивает силу этого «союза наций». Итак, не вдаваясь в подробности сюжета альбома и не обращаясь к отдельным композиция, назову “Father Of Victory” сильнейшим фолк-релизом прошлого года, а проект – одной из самых успешных формаций, выпускающихся на независимых лейблах мира.
Reactor

Who needs a European metal song contest when we have Folkearth, an international project? Their previous album “Drakkars In The Mist” was a bit too tame to my liking compared to “By The Sword Of My Father”, yet with this “Father of Victory” Folkearth comes back with a vengeance on me, and I must confess that I like such things. I am just a critic, who happens to be a total metal head, and on their new album I think the band has managed to recapture the balance between folk and metal in a fitting way to be displayed on a metal e-zine like Vampire Magazine.
The project, evolving around a handful of ‘steady’ members, has this time no German musician(s)in the line-up: the bulk is made out of Greek, American, French and Italian participants. In a way that is a pity, as I believe that the strongest scene and some of the best bands in folk metal come from Germany. Yet to my surprise, this "Father of Victory" has turned out to be my favorite album of Folearth this far!

The album’s first three songs built up from epic to slow. ‘The Forlorn Knight’ first starts as a narrated children’s bed story, but after a minute it becomes an epic song, with a male ‘monotonous folk voice’ leading, supported by the female folk lines. After that ‘The Purest Breed’ comes, which has a paste ideal for horse riding: you know the songs that have a cadence as if a horse rider is riding with his sword in the air: well, ‘The Purest Breed’ is such a song. This one is mainly sung by an aggressive voice, which is even built up in ‘Sleipnir’: indeed, the ьber horse, being one of the most aggressive songs (if not the most aggressive) I have ever heard from Folkearth, with the flute as folkloristic instrument.
That same trick, from acoustic is repeated on track 4, 5 and 6, and with “The Will of Odin” Folkearth deliver a mighty epic song, combining the best the band has to offer. The support of the women voices to the ‘monotonous’ male vocals is sublime, as is the the build-up of the song, to a climax that makes it impossible not to bang your head to, and the violin plays a prominent role in this one.
After such a song, the title track becomes an acoustic intermezzo, especially when it is followed by yet such another aggressive song like ‘Charles Martel’, which might appeal Finntroll fans. And yes, it has lead by an electric guitar, which is not that common among the Folkearth material.
Next up is block of three epic songs in which Folkearth uses almost every ingredient of this album regarding paste and the interaction between the three singing styles (female voice and the male aggressive and monotonous voice), from epic fast to raging fury. And like the opening ‘Carmina Bellica’ is an epic track with a prominent role for the female voice, smoothly leading this album to it end. Well placed so to say...

“Father of Victory” is to me, as a metal head, their best album so far. Yes, the balance between metal and folk is good, but also the way the songs are built up bring much more dynamic and tension compared to “Drakkars In The Mist”. Especially a song like ‘The Will Of Odin’ belongs to the best songs I will probably hear this year. Also the production of this album is clear. Had it been possible to come up with a huge budget, this album would have made a huge impact, but right now I can tell you that the Folkearth fans will love this “Father of Victory”, and it sure as hell is an album I will play a lot more this year. Folkearth fans, don’t hesitate, just order! In my humble opinion their best album so far!
Neithan - Vampire magazine

Похоже, что интернациональная группа FOLKEARTH поставила себе за цель издавать новые альбомы каждый год, таким образом решив переплюнуть другие подобные команды, типа THERION, HAGGARD, AYREON и иже с ними. "Father of Victory" - это уже четвёртый альбом группы за пять лет, что в наше время является своеобразным подвигом среди метал групп, учитывая то количество народу, что каждый раз принимает участие в записи дисков FOLKEARTH. Порой, многие команды, имея в составе раза в четыре меньше народу, не могут выпустить даже одного альбома за такой период, посему работоспособность участников FOLKEARTH просто удивляет. В записи диска "Father of Victory" принимали участие музыканты из 7 стран в количестве 20 человек. На этот раз участники значатся из следующих групп: DOL AMROTH, THE SOIL BLEEDS BLACK, MOONROT, PEORDH, OAKHELM, ANNWN, FREKKR. Как всегда музыкальное содержимое и оформление альбома сделано выше всяких похвал, поэтому приобретение данного диска даже не обсуждается. На данный момент идёт работа над записью акустического альбома "Songs of Yore" и новейшего материала "Fatherland".
9/10 Costas Silent - Sacratum Magazine

Father of Victory is the fourth release from Folkearth, a band whom started in 2004. Folkearth is a culmination of musicians from different countries who perform pagan and folk metal, this release features twenty performers from such places as USA, Greece, Italy, France, England, Wales and Lithuania. Members of the band originate from such acts as Moonrot, Peordh, Annwn and Dol Amroth.
This latest release features twelve tracks of folk Viking metal, as you can imagine there is much variation in the vocals presented on this CD from clean female and male performances to darker blacker metal moments. There are heavier moments and many lighter times to be heard with some mixed results. A multitude of instruments are utilized through this recording such as violin, flute, celtic harp, tin whistle and soprano recorder, working well with the usual drums, bass and guitar.
Due to large number of contributions the tracks are quite varied such as title track "Father of Victory" an acoustic song which is followed by the heavier and darker "Charles Martel" but still retains the traditional instruments.
The results of this formula must have been successful so far, with more releases in the works from Folkearth, an acoustic album Songs Of Yore is out now and a fifth album Fatherland is planned.
3,5/5 Scott Jessup - Sea of Tranquility zine

Here we go again, another release from Folkearth! I think this is a personal record, I don´t think I´ve made reviews from as many releases from a single band like with Folkearth. Just the other day I worked on their acoustic release "Songs of Yore"!
Anyway, for those who don´t know Folkearth, they are a Folk/Viking Metal project from... all over the world! That´s right, there´s no mistake, they have musicians from many different countries, six, to be exact, in this particular release.
"Father of Victory" is their latest release, although they also released another album this year, the acoustic "Songs of Yore".
Since I´m quite familiar with their work, I can compare this one with their other albums. It´s pretty much the same style, as expected, which is good because the previous stuff was quite good too.
My personal favourites here are probably "Carmina Bellica" and "Father of Victory", but it´s the kind of album that if you like one song, you´ll probably have no hard time enjoying the rest.
If this project decides to make a best of album one day it would be one hell of a release!
Fans of the genre should (once again) find the time to check out Folkearth´s music, not just this album but all the others.
8/10 Pedro Santos - Metal March zine

Surprisingly enough, this is only Heathen Harvest´s second encounter with the amazing project in Folkearth even though they´ve released a total of four albums up to this point (and 2 additional after). The band has become infamous in the pagan and folk metal underground worlds as well as the realm of neofolk / martial / ambient folk, not only because of the integrity of all those involved and their passion and dedication to the project and cause, but because of the international context that the band has taken in. Folk music in general has long been a geographical affair. The folk scene traditionally labels its music with a precursor, usually a country as in Finnish Folk, German Folk, Native American Folk, etc. The reasons are obvious, as depending on what section of the world you´re looking at will decide the style of music being played. The Chinese folk artist will undoubtedly be a distorted but still mirrored image of the German folk artist. Folkearth is perhaps the first project to literally reach across these invisible geographical boundaries and bring together a kind of “world folk”, I.e., what their name represents. This is the voice of pagans from around the world, together, no longer adversaries in tribes, but united in both their passion, and against what they believe is wrong in this world.
Folkearth is an ever-evolving project. Every album has different musicians, some albums have several same musicians. No one record is the same because of the amount of people involved in it and where they come from. Those involved in this particular release include (in no particular order) Fearann from French Black folkers Valuatir, Marios Koutsoukos from Greek Dol Amroth, the lovely Hildr Valkyrie, Mark Riddick of ritual ambient extraordinaires Hexentanz, Dreogan of Bergelmir, Polydeykis of Zion / Sacred Blood, Loki of Frekkr, Pete Jay of Wormwood / Oakhelm, and many others. These musicians reign from the US, UK, Greece, Italy, France, and Lithuania. As limiting as the “folk” label may seem, Folkearth´s music is incredibly diversified, not only because of the geographical openness of the music, but also because of the open minds of the artists. The band as an entity isn´t afraid to venture everywhere from heavenly voices neoclassical to hard-edged black metal and back to power metal styles.
Lyrically, what you can expect is pretty much the limit and is sadly where the band´s music hits a dead end as far as ´openness´. The typical subjects are in use: Norse mythology, landscapes and creatures, fantasy, battles, glory, honor, etc. The music represents values that any man or woman of any faith or culture should be able to embrace, as well as the inevitable influence of the Norse agenda. However, the music on Folkearth´s “Father of Victory” hits a strong nerve. It represents more than just a band singing about vikings or Odin. It represents an entire way of life that has seen a revitalization from around the world, and thus serves an importance far greater than a simple music release. This is a tome for spirituality, a record in the historical books of time, simply in music form. This music is something people that actually grasp this lifestyle will look back to in years to come, to share with their children, to come back to in time because there´s reason beyond a good song here and there.
Musically, Folkearth´s nature is largely epic, not like that of Moonsorrow or Bal-sagoth, but rather in musical emphasis. There is a lack of keyboards because the usage of authentic instruments has been preferred for a project as such. Flutes, harps, pipes, tin whistles, there is so much here than usual guitar / bass / drums / synth that we´re accustomed to. The vocal lineups are consistently changing as well, giving rise to the global aspect. This makes for perhaps the most ´authentic´ folk music you´ll find today. Though, the basis for this music is still the typical band base in drums, base, and guitar. There are a great deal of strong moments that stick out in this album, especially the pipe moments like those in the track The Will of Odin, which speaks out heavily as perhaps the defining track for this album. An extremely focused song that speaks beyond Euro folk and flies around the world several times. The only thing that sounds out of place with the album is the vocals, at times, of Hildr Valkyrie. Admittedly, I´m no expert on the female vocal side of folk music, but her representation of it sounds largely Eastern. This is indeed a folk music with an eye out for world music, but they perhaps could have gotten someone from an Eastern nation for these vocal lines if that was the key for it. If European folky female vocals sound like this, then I´ve been fooled into believing otherwise in my lifetime. They simply don´t sound like they fit in.
Overall, this album is a real treat for any fan of folk music, especially for those with a green eye for the world itself. In the world we live in, its important for us to look back to archaic times and our own heritage and ancestory for old answers to modern problems. Many of the issues we´ve created in this world today can easily be solved with old technology, values, and ethics. These old principles need to be tought to the next generation, to make a return to this Earth in general. This album isn´t meant, by any means, to be a cry out for the “Green movement”, but you have to admit that the pagan way of life is far more approachable in times like this. Again, the important of this album and the band itself goes beyond just simple music. It speaks about the times, spiritually, politically, and otherwise.
Sage - Heathen harvest zine