Band:	Claim The Throne
Album:	Ale Tales
Style:	Extreme folk metal
Release date:	September 2009

Disc I
01. Plundersaga
02. Of Mead & Weed
03. Set Sail On Ale
04. Fable From An Oaken Table
05. Two Pints Of Honey & A Barrel Full Of Beer

Disc II [Bonus DVD]
01. Set Sail On Ale [video]
02. Only The Brave Return Release Party
03. Making-Of Set Sail On Ale

Style: Folk Metal
Country: Australia
Label: Prime Cuts Music
Length: 11:31 (CD) approx 45 mins (DVD)

Line-up:
Brendon Capriotti - vocals, guitars
Oliver Soos - guitars
Jim Parker - bass, vocals
Brenton Pedler - drums
Jesse Millea - keyboards, vocals



When it comes to Australian Folk Metal, we don't exactly have the greatest range of bands out there. Of the probably 20-odd bands not a lot are still active, let alone have a full-length release. Claim The Throne has joined the resistance with this very small scene and hopefully they can inject some "jig" into Australian metal.

This is the second release from Claim The Throne; an EP named Ale Tales. The first being a full length called Only The Brave Return which is based on a book that the band wrote. Ale Tales is an audio and video collection in that the package contains a small collection of songs on CD but also a bonus DVD. I would imagine that Ale Tales is somewhat of a teaser for an upcoming Claim The Throne album as the audio portion is really quite short. There are just the five songs coming together to form about twelve minutes of music. The problem with this is that as soon as you get into the rhythm of any one of the songs, the track finishes and the listener is left feeling a little empty. Again though Ale Tales is just an EP so we'll have to see how the tracks go when (or if) they're included in a full album.

You're probably wondering what the music itself sounds like now though. Well Claim The Throne play a kind of upbeat folk style which does sound a bit cheesy but is nonetheless quite catchy. The mostly keyboard-driven folk sounds offer great melodies and the guitar-work is pretty heavy and blends well with the style of music. There are harsh vocals as well as booming clean ones in the Viking kind of style. It's nothing that bands like Nomans Land and Turisas haven't done but I don't think Claim The Throne aim to be a kind of band that breaks new barriers in their style, perhaps just those in Australia.

Accompanying the CD is a DVD portion which contains footage of the release party gig for their first album, a video clip of "Set Sail On Ale" and the making-of video of said clip. The band got quite a turnout at their show and the antics that the band and the crowd get up to are quite amusing. The same can be said about the making-of video. I think in the end that that is what this release is about; it might be seen as generic beer-drinking, sword-swinging Folk Metal but the band and the listener sure can have some fun in being apart of it.