Text by Rene Rosierse
Just two weeks after the release of their 12th album ‘Hex’, Faun returned to Utrecht (NL) for another night of Pagan Folk, with support from Janice Burns & Jon Doran and Ye Banished Privateers.
Pagan Folk is the label the band gave their sound years ago and they’ve made it completely their own in the past few decades of their existence. Faun have refined their own style over the past twenty years with a sound based on ancient times, Keltic folk, and Pagan rituals, combined with modern elements. With their latest album they put their focus entirely on wise women and witches. For some strange reason the venue categorised this show as ‘heavy, luckily those that attended the show were already familiar with the band or knew at least what to expect. The evening became another filled with powerful songs, beautiful ballads, enchanting stories, and everything in-between.
We were welcomed at a packed venue with a great stage set complete with gigantic trees, but before Faun hit the stage, we were entertained by the two support acts; Janice Burns & Jon Doran (who we unfortunately missed), and Ye Banished Privateers! Ye Banished Privateers is a seven-piece band of pirates from Sweden. These pirates know how to party and had the entire venue partying along with them.
The band was already known to most of the audience, which created a nice atmosphere right from the get-go. Having seen them earlier this year at Castlefest where the focus was mostly on having a good time at first we weren’t convinced if this would be a relevant support act for Faun… Luckily the band proved us wrong, besides the drinking songs there was plenty of room for more serious musical chapters. Seven great musicians alternated being singers, and highlights of the evening were their anthem ‘We Are Ye Banished Privateers’, and power ballad ‘Annabel’.
At nine o’clock it was finally time for Faun to enter the stage. We were taken straight into the woods with the beautiful ‘Belladonna’ from the new album. From there on out the band took us on a walk down memory lane with the classics ‘Alba’, ‘Walpurgisnacht’ and ‘Nacht des Nordens’. Old and new songs weaved together perfectly during the set. Singer Oliver S. Tyr was happy to tell us some of the background stories behind the songs and about the women that inspired him to create them. One of the most beautiful of these new songs is undoubtedly ‘Lady Isobel’ which also happens to be the band’s latest single release.
The oldest release of the evening was single ‘Andro’, which dates back to 2004, it is a perfect example of a song that ripened well over the years, one that was a typical medieval song when it was written, however these days it’s got a few more modern musical elements added to the mix. This one has really stood the test of time and is our all-time favourite. Although solos during a live gig can sometimes be a bit boring, Faun knows how to make them interesting, which they showed off in Utrecht. They’re undoubtedly one of the few with a hurdy gurdy solo as part of their set!
Stephan Groth combined his hurdy gurdy with a modern loop station, the use of so many different and unique instruments always works very well for the Faun repertoire. This did make it hard to figure out what Niel Mitra added to the mix with his synths, however we wouldn’t have wanted to miss him on stage for the world, his enthusiasm added to ours and we’d probably miss his sound and beats if they wouldn’t have been there. It was once again an unforgettable evening of live music and we were happy to be a part of the World of Faun once again!
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