Band: Bloody Valkyria
Album: In Our Home, Across The Fog
Genre: Melodic/Atmospheric Black Metal
Country: Finland
Label: Northern Silence
Released: April 4, 2025
Introduction
Bloody Valkyria is an extremely promising new Melodic Black Metal band hailing from Finland. Helmed solely by Jere Kervinen. Last September saw the release Of Bloody Valkyria’s debut album Kingdom in Fire, a conceptual album based around the stories from J.R.R.Tolkien’s novel The Silmarillion. Now, less than a year later, Kervinen has graced us with yet another offering, his second full length album, let’s investigate.
In Our Home, Across the Fog
Tracklist:
- The Fallen Leaves Tell a Story
- Imbued with the Rune of Death
- Tale of House Hoslow
- From Stormveil to Liurnia
- Radahn Festival
- May Chaos Take the World
- The Loyal Half-Wolf
- Age of the Stars
Whereas before the concept was Tolkien inspired, this time around with In Our Home, Across The Fog the inspiration is drawn from the lore of Elden Ring.
The album is masterfully crafted. Beautiful, breathtaking, melodic and aggressive. Picking up where Kervinen left off on Kingdom In Fire, In Our Home… somehow manages to elevate that to the next level. The production of this album is a noticeable improvement from the debut, giving the overall sound a much more polished and cohesive vibe, all the while maintaining the epic atmosphere Bloody Valkyria does so well.
It’s astonishing and rather prolific that this is the work of a single person. It’s an impressive follow-up, especially considering that the debut was released less than a year ago and continues to showcase Kervinens prowess as a composer and multi-instrumentalist.
Most impressive, to me though, is the guitar work. Kervinen is an incredibly talented musician and his guitar playing really shines throughout this album. There isn’t a single riff that somehow doesn’t fail to captivate. Whether it’s weaving melodic, tremolo-picked passages, around bursts of symphonic instrumental pieces, folk inspired acoustic sections or well structured, tasteful solos that suit the songs very well without being overbearing or too flashy. The album has it all.
The lyrics are incredibly well written, weaving a narrative that echoes Elden Rings complex and rich storytelling. Combined with the music as a backdrop to the lore the album is an incredibly immersive and atmospheric listen.
When considering my favorite track off the album I can’t quite pick just one, but there are definitely a few that stand out for me. Imbued With The Rune Of Death and May Chaos Take The World stand out.
Conclusion
Bloody Valkyria has steadily climbed my list of up and coming favorite artists. In Our Home, Across The Fog is a contender on my list of albums of the year. And whether you’re a fan of Elden Ring or Melodic Black Metal I highly recommend it. The album is a love letter to the wonderfully complex lore seen throughout the Elden Ring universe and to melodic black metal as a whole.
BMZ Score: 9 out of 10
Support Bloody Valkyria here: https://bloodyvalkyria.bandcamp.com/album/in-our-home-across-the-fog
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