#scarlet-records — Public Fediverse posts

https://www.europesays.com/ie/698047/ Game Over – When Darkness Falls Review #2026 #30 #Anthrax #Éire #Entertainment #Exodus #GameOver #IE #Ireland #ItalianMetal #Music #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #Sep26 #Testament #ThrashMetal #WhenDarknessFalls

Here it is. My first repeat customer. Last April, Italian five-piece Game Over blindsided me with their sixth LP, Face the End, a love letter to ’70s and ’80s horror flicks and coast-to-coast prime-era thrash. Even with some uneven songwriting, a refreshed lineup helped them carve out a newly honed sound that balanced thrash’s timeworn genre tropes with a punchy, aggressive energy that hit all the right notes. Well, color me surprised again. Just a little over a year later, Game Over returns with their seventh album, When Darkness Falls, and a first glance suggests we’re in for more of the same. Anytime a band releases albums in such quick succession, though, I get wary. Will the songwriting suffer? Is this a case of having too much material for their own good? Will it bring the same fun factor as Face the End?

When Darkness Falls picks right up where Face the End left off, offering a heaping plate of thrash comfort food. It’s the kind of thrash made for tearing around town in your beat-up van with the stereo cranked and a case of cheap beer rattling around in the back. These tracks are stuffed with enough sing-along gang vocals and high-octane energy to get any metal fan to pump their fists in time with the riffs. Game Over pull from both ends of the classic thrash spectrum. “Fight For Your Mind” and “Two Souls One Flesh” channel strong Testament vibes, while “Break Away” does its best early Exodus impression with its “Toxic Waltz” swagger. Elsewhere, Anthrax’s East Coast party atmosphere roots “Scream It Out” and “Self Denied,” balancing their aggression with a sense of fun and accessibility. And while the horror-themed lyrics are tropey as hell, they fit Game Over’s approach so naturally that it’s hard to hold any real complaints.

Game Over’s brand of thrash is almost guaranteed to be a blast live, but its familiarity underscores both When Darkness Falls’ strengths and its limitations. The quartet writes solid, entertaining material that hits exactly where it aims, yet it rarely pushes beyond the safety of the genre’s borders or tests how far their sound could stretch. Outside of “What Fate Brings” and “Curse of Strahd,” as well as closer “Command to Die” which drags somewhat in energy and songwriting, the album’s tracks are appealing and well executed, but so safe that they raise questions about the group’s appetite for evolution. A few calculated risks here and creative detours there could have elevated When Darkness Falls to the next level. Still, the old saying “a classic never dies” applies. Game Over know how to deliver and across the record’s brisk 33 minutes I found myself often nodding along, swept up in the abrasive riffs and infectious energy of “Scream It Out,” “Fight For Your Mind,” “Self Denied” and “Two Souls One Flesh” without a care in the world.

Game Over continues to run through vocalist Danny Schiavina, who remains one of the band’s strongest assets. Shifting effortlessly between gritty and menacing roars (“Beneath the Ground,” “Curse of Strahd”) and the soaring, Belladonna-esque proclamations of “Break Away,” Schiavina gives When Darkness Falls a dynamic spine and is a force to be reckoned with. He leans less on his higher register here than he did on Face the End, and he’s not pushed quite as forward in the mix as I would have liked, but his performance suits the heavier, more direct approach of the songwriting all the same. The gang vocals also add punch and immediacy, even though they are overutilized. Now the sole guitarist after Alessandro “Sanso” Sansone’s departure, Luca “Ziro” Zironi, comes armed with a formidable ax, firing off power chords, relentless down-picking, and sharp solos that fuel When Darkness Falls with brute force.

When Darkness Falls delivers exactly what it sets out to do. It’s a familiar platter of loud, well-executed thrash served with enough charm and muscle to satisfy the loyal denim faithful still craving the nostalgic bite of olde. After two very similar records in such close succession, though, I’m hoping Game Over develops some new tricks because that’s what ultimately keeps When Darkness Falls from reaching greater heights, and at this point, we know the cut of these Italians’ gib.

Rating: Good
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: gameoverofficial.bandcamp.com | gameoverofficial.net | facebook.com/GameOverThrashMetal
Releases Worldwide: September 18th, 2026

First appearing on these pages back in 2016 with sophomore record Forsaken, progressive power outfit Noveria have made a habit of getting in their own way. After Forsaken failed to match its Evergreyed ambition with clumsy execution, the quintet bounced back in a big way with Aequilibrium (2019), a record packed with heaviness, melody and virtuosity that hinted at huge things for these Italians. Then regression reared its ugly head with 2024’s The Gates of the Underworld. Although Noveria cleverly reframed their emotional themes through mythological imagery, the album once again collapsed under the weakness of its songwriting, disappointing GardensTale enough to question whether he would ever review them again. Indeed, consistency has been elusive for Noveria, making their on-again, off-again pattern of releases particularly frustrating. But fret not, dear reader. If history is any guide, the pendulum should swing back toward the positive with fifth LP Becoming After, assuming the metal gods smile on us.

And smile they have. Striking a sweet spot between Symphony X and Dream Theater, with touches of Pagan’s Mind, Becoming After finds Noveria sounding like a band reborn. Talent has never been in short supply here, and their cup now runneth over, with drummer Paolo Conte and keyboardist Paolo Campitelli (ScreaMachine) replacing longtime members Davide Calabretta and Julien Spreutels, respectively, alongside the addition of vocalist Frank Marino (Dreamscape). These guys can flat-out play, and Becoming After reaps the benefits, delivering everything existing fans could hope for, only harder, faster and stronger. The aggressive riffs of Aequilibrium are pervasive, synched tightly with Conte’s kinetic rhythms and Campitelli’s synth embellishments, all bolstered by string arrangements by violinist Abigail Stahlschmidt and cellist Luca Basile on cuts like “Through Your Light”1 and “Convicted to Rise.” There’s even a few surprises thrown in for good measure, including djent-focused tracks (“Radiance,” “Heavenfall”) and serene ballads (“Through Your Light”) that help keep things fresh. Although the stylistic departures of “Heavenfall” and “Radiance” seem somewhat out of place within the broader context, they are executed well enough to keep momentum while still feeling fun and adventurous.

Losing most of your roster can hamstring even the best bands, but in Noveria’s case, the shakeup has proven transformative. Francesco Corigliano’s departure left a massive void, but Frank Marino is quick to quell any fears he can’t fill those shoes. The downfall of Gates was its lack of hooks and Mariano ensures that problem doesn’t persist on Becoming After, stuffing Noveria’s songs to the brim with hooks and towering choruses. Possessing James LaBrie’s (Dream Theater) buttery tone and multi-octave range, Marino tears through tracks like “Cold Flames,” “Convicted to Rise,” “Echoes From the Abyss,” and “Infinite Horizons” with a command that is increasingly rare these days. While his voice occasionally loses a bit of power when venturing into higher registers, it still more than holds its own against the record’s dense instrumentation.

As impressive as the vocal performance on Becoming After is, the rest of Noveria deserve equal recognition. Longtime guitarist Francesco Mattei drives the group’s sound with a barrage of muscular riffs that span progressive, power, and djent, setting his fretboard ablaze with virtuosic solos and rapid-fire scales that form the record’s ambitious foundation. When paired with Campitelli’s fleet-fingered keyboard solos, the two put on an absolute show that rivals the best in the business. Likewise, bassist Andrea Arcangeli’s (DGM) dynamic bass lines and Conte’s battering drum work provide a low-end backbone that underpins Noveria’s grandiose arrangements, resulting in songwriting that remains interesting throughout the record’s substantial 55-minute runtime. However, though not drastically overlong, Becoming After does periodically lose steam, most notably during the self-titled closing interlude, “Heavenfall” and “Viper’s Nest,” which are far from bad but feel overshadowed by the stronger material surrounding them.

Lineup changes be damned, Noveria have roared back with Becoming After, crafting an album with tremendous replay value and one that has beamed its way into my psyche with its memorable hooks and consistently strong songwriting. Progressive power metal can often veer into territory that is far too cheesy for my tastes, yet Becoming After strikes the ideal balance between over-the-top spectacle and tasteful restraint in a way that is both charming and difficult to stop listening to. Time will tell whether Becoming After finally breaks Noveria’s streak of inconsistent releases, but they now have my full attention.

Rating: Very Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: scarletrecords.bandcamp.com/album/becoming-after | noveriaofficial.com/home.html | facebook.com/NoveriaOfficial
Releases Worldwide: August 21st, 2026

Review: Vision Divine – A Clockwork Reverie

Published by Francesco on 2026/06/202026/06/20 Artwork by Augusto Silva. Style: Power metal, progressive metal (clean vocals)Recommended for fans…
#NewsBeep #News #US #USA #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesOfAmerica #Music #2026 #7.5 #aor #cleanvocals #Entertainment #italy #May #PowerMetal #ProgressiveMetal #ScarletRecords
https://www.newsbeep.com/us/716987/

Review: Vision Divine – A Clockwork Reverie

Published by Francesco on 2026/06/202026/06/20 Artwork by Augusto Silva. Style: Power metal, progressive metal (clean vocals)Recommended for fans…
#NewsBeep #News #Music #2026 #7.5 #AOR #cleanvocals #Entertainment #Italy #may #PowerMetal #ProgressiveMetal #ScarletRecords #UK #UnitedKingdom
https://www.newsbeep.com/uk/650005/

I used to love poppy, ultra-processed power metal. Blind Guardian basically killed that whole scene for me when I discovered them and realized power metal could have riffs, but a part of me still remembers what I loved. A part of me won’t let it go. And like a shadow from the past, Sweden’s Shadowborne arrived with their debut Heaven’s Falling. Led by vocalist Eira Shadowborne and accompanied by keyboardist The Warden, guitarist The Oathbearer, bassist The Keeper, and drummer The Warbringer,1 Shadowborne seek to make their mark on the genre with fantasy storytelling, monumental hooks, and shiny, bloopy synthesizers. With groups like Twilight Force, Fellowship, and Brothers of Metal reminding me in recent years that there’s still room in my heart for things campy and glossy, and catching some nostalgia pangs to boot, I decided to give Shadowborne a fair shake. But does Heaven’s Falling spell a new rising star in power metal, or are Shadowborne just another curd in the cheese wheel?

Heaven’s Falling is an uncomplicated debut for Shadowborne: ten tracks,2 thirty-five minutes of dramatic, anthemic, and highly polished power metal. Shadowborne pivot between two modes on Heaven’s Falling: folky, Brothers of Metalesque jaunts like “Hold the Door” and “The Wall” and synthy, pop-hooked 80s LARP à la Battle Beast on songs like “Stranger to Myself” and “Wolf and the Queen.” Oathbearer does the Sabaton thing and riffs in sync with Warden’s synth stings on “High and Low” while Warbringer lays out mid-paced marches, barring one diversion into speed on “Custodians.” Production-wise, Heaven’s Falling is bright and loud, and nothing sounds particularly real, especially the wispy clean guitars (“End of the World”) and Warden’s toothless gang vocals (“Hold the Door”). It’s the kind of metal that Beast In Black can, and likely do, write in their sleep. Simply, anyone familiar with the Europower scene over the past fifteen(ish) years will know what to expect from Shadowborne.

And if you know Europower, then you know that Chorus Is King. Heaven’s Falling hits its stride with every chorus, accomplished by the phenomenal pipes of Eira Shadowborne. Evoking the likes of Ylva Eriksson (Brothers of Metal) and Noora Louhimo (ex-Battle Beast), Shadowborne belts and croons with power and charisma, sounding thoroughly in charge across Heaven’s Falling. Album highlights “Heaven’s Falling (Dragon’s Hymn)” and “Raven” demonstrate Shadowborne at her best, pouring copious heart into their strong melodies and itch-scratching layered harmonies. Beyond Shadowborne’s battle cries, there’s a commitment to bigness across Heaven’s Falling that contributes to its catchiness. Whether stomping away in “Wolf and the Queen” or waxing melodramatic balladry on “The End of the World,” Shadowborne fill as much sonic space and layer parts as hard as the music can take before bursting. Shadowborne the band is built around Shadowborne, the singer, and Heaven’s Falling is shaped around letting her shine in its biggest moments.

Heaven’s Falling’s greatest strength, however, comes with a price. Like much chorus-centric music, Heaven’s Falling suffers from a severe case of Boring Verse Syndrome (BVS).3 Most songs default to banal chugging and space-filling synths with little flair or variation. Even Shadowborne’s lines aren’t nearly as engaging in the verse, sounding somewhat thin on “Stranger to Myself” and “The End of the World.” As a result, Heaven’s Falling feels somewhat hollow. Where songs do feel fleshed out, like “Custodians” with its propulsive tempo and “Raven” with its darker verse contrasting its bright chorus, plus an Amon Amarth march in the intro, they stand out drastically. Oathbearer’s solos in particular could’ve cooked longer, as they’re slick, proficient, and wickedly fun across the board but also far, far too brief to leave a lasting impact. A great chorus is good to have, and Shadowborne can deliver them, but Heaven’s Falling needs great whole songs to be a great whole album.

What holds Shadowborne’s debut down is what holds much of the genre back: entrapment within genre tropes. Heaven’s Falling is loaded with talent and vim, and a lot of these hooks are going to be stuck in my head for a long time. But between the BVS, flaccid production, and played-out approach to power metal on Heaven’s Falling, Shadowborne have crafted a record that simply can’t stand out. Maybe Shadowborne just needed to prove to themselves they could write an album, and their sophomore will be more adventurous. Or maybe this is exactly what they wanted to write. Either way, fans of power metal may like what they’ll hear, but they’ll certainly have heard it already.

Rating: Mixed
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps MP3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: bandcamp.com/heavens-falling | facebook.com/Shadowborne
Releases Worldwide: June 19th, 2026

Vision Divine release the title track from their upcoming EP "A Clockwork Reverie."

Details: https://metalinsider.net/video/vision-divine-share-title-track-from-upcoming-ep-a-clockwork-reverie

#VisionDivine #ProgressiveMetal #PowerMetal #ScarletRecords #MetalNews

When last we saw Sweden’s Evermore, they arrived within these halls, wielding a platter of power metal that was as muscular as it was melodic. The songs on 2023’s In Memorium hit me right in the feels, the crunch of its guitars hit me right in the nuts, and overall, I really enjoyed the record and its beefy, Avantasia-with-the-fat-trimmed-off vibe. While I had some issues with the vocal performance on In Memorium, I saw enough potential in Evermore to be legitimately excited when I saw the promo for follow-up Mournbraid splash into the sump. Once again sporting a be-womaned cover, said promo touts a “sound made of aggressive guitar riffs, soaring epic vocals, and unforgettable hooks—all amplified by a massive, neat production.” It’s a bold claim, but can the music live up to it?

It doesn’t take long for that question to be answered. On first proper track “Underdark,” Evermore sounds heavier than ever and hookier than one of those full-body Velcro suits that sticks you to the wall. In the review for In Memorium, I pointed out that that album’s lead single recycled elements of an Amon Amarth song, and interestingly enough, I can make a similar claim this time around, albeit with even more brutal source material; both “Underdark” and its preceding instrumental intro seem to rehash a melody from The Lion King soundtrack. But no worries! Once again, the pieces work so well together to kick things off that I can’t even be mad.

If you’re like me, when you saw the color palette used for Mournbraid’s cover art, you expected the music to take a turn for the darker, and if you’re like me, you were right. Each iteration of Evermore gets heavier, while still residing squarely within the confines of “melodic power metal,” and they are undoubtedly at their best when they lean into that heft. The more aggressive tracks, like “Mournbraid,” the aforementioned “Underdark,” “Ravens at the Gates” (whose melo-death riffing places the emphasis on ‘At the Gates’), and my personal anthem for 2026, the Dream Evil-esque “Armored Will,” are Evermore’s sweet spot, and they are only made more powerful by Mournbraid’s stellar production—I can’t remember the last time I’ve heard a guitar tone this mighty.

But the deliciousness of the beef makes the blandness of the more subdued side dish all the more glaring. Plopped right in the middle of Mournbraid is “Oath of Apathy,” an unfortunately titled, 7-minute slog of emotion that fails to grab my heartstrings and pulls the emergency brake on the album’s momentum. I won’t count closer “Old Man’s Tale” against Evermore since it’s labeled as a bonus track, but it suffers the same fate, even if it did manage to bring a tear to my eye once when I realized that I am officially the old man in the tale. Fortunately, every other song here is a banger, so I found it relatively easy to overlook this one blunder, although it did keep me from whipping out and slapping down my 4.0.

With Mournbraid, Evermore did just about everything I asked them to do. The vocals seemed to work much better this time around, the band dialed up the heaviness, and that guitar tone, oh God, the guitar tone! These guys have struck the perfect balance between savory and sweet in the world of power metal, and not even a mid-album detour from said balance could keep me from enjoying the hell out of this record. Greatness is coming for these guys. I can feel it in my old bones.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Website: facebook.com/evermoremetal
Releases Worldwide: March 20th, 2026

Mystfall – Embers of a Dying World Review

Once again, I return to my roots. That opulent, gem-encrusted egg from which my metalhead nascency spawned, symphonic…
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https://www.newsbeep.com/us/535011/

https://www.europesays.com/uk/838573/ Mystfall – Embers of a Dying World Review #2026 #30 #Dialith #Elvellon #EmbersOfADyingWorld #Entertainment #epica #GreekMetal #Leaves'Eyes #Mar26 #music #Mystfall #Nightwish #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #SymphonicMetal #SymphonicPowerMetal #UK #UnitedKingdom #Xandria

Once again, I return to my roots. That opulent, gem-encrusted egg from which my metalhead nascency spawned, symphonic power metal. Cloaked in velvet drapery as I return to these cobbled alleys I used to haunt, those early years steeping in Nightwish, Leaves’ Eyes, Epica, and Xandria wash over me, evoking a nostalgic bliss. Enter Greece’s Mystfall and their sophomore effort Embers of a Dying World. Relatively fresh on the scene, and competing with newer champions like Elvellon or Dialith, do Mystfall have what it takes to make waves?

If nothing else, Mystfall have two big things going for them: a (relatively) meaty guitar tone and the most convincing death growls and blackened rasps in the genre right now. Thanks to a moderately-better-than-industry-standard mix and master, you can clearly hear the bass guitar thundering underneath lush strings and prominent choirs as well. These are items that countless acts in this space neglect or shortchange, but not Mystfall. Thankfully, those items don’t detract from the usual suspects. Operatic mezzo-soprano lead vocals, heavily accented; hooky verse work and soaring choruses; galloping drums and brisk pacing; rich orchestrations; the gang’s all here, and in fine form for the most part. And, in another unexpected breath of fresh air, Embers of a Dying World clocks in at a tidy 38 minutes, with the longest song just barely brushing past five minutes. It seems that on paper, Mystfall fully understood their assignment and gave me everything the world needs in a modern symphocheese record.

Embers Of A Dying World by Mystfall

In practice, Embers of a Dying World acquits itself quite nicely as well. Enlisting the help of studio bassist and harsh vocalist Stelios Varotsakis was an inspired choice, as his counterpoint on both instruments elevates everything it touches (“Embers of a Dying World,” “Fading Memories”). It is my assertion that Mystfall make him a full-fledged member of the band immediately. However, his contributions aren’t so astounding as to distract from Marialena Trikoglou’s siren song, Aris Baris’ chuggy riffs, or Dimitris Miglis’ expressive percussion. Hints of old school Epica melodies (“Crimson Dawn,” “Echoes of Arcadia”), Leaves’ Eyes/Xandria adventurism (“Whispers of the Tempest,” “Guardians of the Earth,” “Cosmic Legends”) and Nightwish double bass bounce (“Sleeper in the Abyss”) coalesce into a fun variety of moods and motifs, all smartly woven together to allow each performer their spotlight. With such a bizarrely tight runtime, Embers of a Dying World is also ridiculously easy to spin multiple times in one session, assisting greatly with long-term memorability.

Unfortunately, Mystfall still struggles to find a distinct identity in the homologous plague the symphonic power metal scene perpetuates. While crafting an enjoyable album that is undoubtedly fun and wholly engaging, its similarity to those bands that originally forged the style is undeniable and obvious. Partly due to the strict and restrictive nature of operatic singing techniques—and the physiological difficulties that committing to that style poses to the exploration of any other kind of singing—Marialena’s technically competent performance here lacks impact and power when pinned against singers who can and do work in multiple disciplines (Simone Simons, Floor Jansen, Veronica Bordacchini). On the instrumental front, Aris Baris’ riffs rarely venture outside of the conventions long upheld in this field, often allowing the orchestrations to take point when leading melodies or initiating motifs. Even the dramatic orchestrations lack the showstopping quality they could have if they were either recorded with a full orchestra or more unique in composition or arrangement.

As a result, Embers of a Dying World feels misplaced in time. Were it released in 1996 or thereabouts, it would’ve constituted an instant hit, a direct competitor to the pack leaders at the time. In 2026, it’s one in a million, albeit better made and brilliantly edited. As maligned by songwriting issues and stylistic banality as symphonic power metal often is, competing for acclaim and attention in that crowded place requires a fierce, striking showing. Mystfall have everything they need to make that showing, but Embers of a Dying World falls just short of that elusive threshold. That said, I’m impressed with it enough to wait avidly for what Mystfall might come up with next!

Rating: Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: mystfallofficial.com | facebook.com/mystfallofficial
Releases Worldwide: March 20th, 2026

When it comes to the vast pantheons of mythological figures, Aeon Gods is clearly interested in the most powerful. Their 2024 debut album, King of Gods, expounded upon the mighty deities of Mesopotamia with plenty of power metal bombast. Now, less than 18 months later, this German five-piece turns their attention to ancient Egypt. Specifically, Reborn to Light orbits the sun god Re (more commonly known today as Ra). The first half recounts Re’s nightly voyage into the underworld and his battles with the giant snake Apophis, then the latter half describes Re’s disagreements with humankind, which lead to his eventual departure at the hands of an unbelieving population. Let’s examine this latest offering and weigh its worthiness.

Reborn to Light may be about a sun god, but Aeon Gods is more similar to the moon reflecting the light of many important power metal forebears. The predominant style is an anthemic blend of Gloryhammer and Sabaton. As expected, the music is big and dramatic, seeking to replicate the larger-than-life storytelling of Brothers of Metal, though with much more of a symphonic slant than folk. Aeon Gods stops just short of going full-blown symphonic power metal like Dragony, sticking closer to acts like Twilight Force or Freedom Call, which garnish with keyboards more judiciously. Organs and choirs at times recall the theatricality of Powerwolf. Pretty much all the main hallmarks of the genre are present on Reborn to Light.

Reborn To Light by Aeon Gods

Overall, Aeon Gods are blessed by their devout worship of these groups. Most immediately noticeable are the sharp, memorable choruses (charismatically delivered by Alex “Sol’Ra-tu” Hunzinger), as well as the bounteous guitar shredding (courtesy of Robert “Abzu’Kean” Altenbach and Nino “En-Atum” Helfrich). Reborn to Light embodies its concept unexpectedly well, being enhanced considerably by a lyric sheet (and a casual Wikipedia perusal about Egyptian mythology). The bulk of the record paints a vivid cycle of blazing sunrise (“Birth of Light”), tranquil twilight (“Barque of Millions (Amduat pt. I)”), a valiant battle (“Soldiers of Re (Amduat pt. III)”), and the inevitable victory of the sun (“Reborn to Light (Amduat pt. IV)”) again. In many important respects, Aeon Gods stacks up well against the genre greats.

On the other hand, this side-by-side comparison reveals a few qualities in which Aeon Gods is lacking. While Sol’Ra-tu has a solid singing voice—some listeners will appreciate that he avoids the typical shrill upper ranges—it isn’t always strong enough to carry the music on its own, particularly during the slower parts like quasi-ballad “Barque of Millions (Amduat pt. I).” The guitarists prove their mettle with their soloing during the bridges of most songs, but there are few notable leads that might have given the vocals a boost. Anja “Su’en-Chel” Hunzinger’s keyboards are more impactful, injecting a triumphant oomph to the chorus of “Reborn to Light (Amduat pt. IV)” and an awe-inspiring tone to “Blood and Sand (Re’s Dying Reign pt. II).” Finally, while Aeon Gods rejects bloat, Reborn to Light does not deviate at all from the standard pop structure, which gives each song a measure of predictability despite the variety in the compositions.

Imperfections notwithstanding, Reborn to Light is a great implementation of tried-and-true musical formulas. It’s executed very well, and should be a pleasantly familiar—albeit safe—experience for many power metal fans. I would, ideally, like to see Aeon Gods apply their abundant talents to more daring songwriting and let the guitars and keyboards share a bit more of the melodic load. Reborn to Light is a sizable step up from Aeon Gods’ debut, showing they are on a clear upward trajectory. I look forward to the day when Aeon Gods ascends to the echelons of full-fledged godhood.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: scarletrecords.bandcamp.com | aeongods.com | facebook.com/AEONGODS
Releases Worldwide: February 20th, 2026

Brutal cold envelops the building as my minions scrape through ice and filthy slush to find even the smallest shard of metallic glimmer. With extensive budget cuts demanded by my exorbitant bonus schedule—as is my right as CEO of this filtration service—there was no room to purchase adequate gear and equipment for these harsher weathers. However, I did take up crocheting recently so each of my “employees” received a nice soft hat.

Hopefully, that will be enough to tide them over until the inclement weather passes and we return to normal temps. Until then, they have these rare finds to keep them warm, and so do you! REJOICE!

Kenstrosity’s Knightly Nightmare

AngelMaker // This Used to Be Heaven [November 20th, 2025 – Self Released]

I’ve been a fan of AngelMaker’s since their 2015 debut Dissentient. The grossly underrated and underappreciated Vancouver septet are a highly specialized deathcore infantry, with their lineup expanding steadily over their career in concert with their ever-increasing songwriting sophistication. Unlike the brutish and belligerent debut and follow-up AngelMaker, 2022’s Sanctum and new outing This Used to Be Heaven indulge in rich layering, near-neoclassical melodies, and dramatic atmosphere to complement AngelMaker’s trademark sense of swaggering groove. With early entries “Rich in Anguish” and “Haunter” establishing the strength of both sides of their sound, it always surprises me how AngelMaker successfully twist and gnarl their sound into shapes—whether it be hardcore, blackened, or melodic—I wasn’t anticipating (“Silken Hands,” “Relinquished,” “Nothing Left”). A rock-solid back half launched by the epic “The Omen” two-part suite brings these deviations from the expected into unity with the deathcore foundation I know AngelMaker so well for (“Malevolence Reigns,” “Altare Mortis”), and in doing so secure their status as one of the most reliably creative deathcore acts in the scene. Nothing here is going to change the minds of the fiercer deathcore detractors, but if your heart is open even just a crack, there’s a good chance This Used to Be Heaven will force themselves into it, if not entirely rip the whole thing asunder. My advice is simply to let it.

This Used To Be Heaven by AngelMaker

ClarkKent’s Sonic Symphonics

Brainblast // Colossus Suprema [November 11th, 2025 – Vmbrella]

A debut album five years in the making from a band formed in 2015, Colossus Suprema is the brainchild of Bogotá, Colombia’s Edd Jiménez. Jiménez turned his passion for and training in classical composition towards his symphonic progressive act, Brainblast. With Bach as an inspiration, Brainblast’s brand of technical death metal has the grandeur of Fleshgod Apocalypse, the speed of Archspire, and the virtuosity of concert musicians. Jiménez’s classical training shows — the compositions have an orchestral feel, only played at insane energy levels. The speed, the depth, and the breadth of the instrumentation are sure to leave you breathless. Nicholas Le Fou Wells (First Fragment) lays down relentless kitwork with jaw-dropping velocity, while Eetu Hernesmaa provides technical fretwork that’ll similarly leave you awestruck. He delivers sublime riffs on “Relentless Rise” and a surprising melodic lead that steals the show on “Unchain Your Soul.” Perhaps most prominent is the virtuoso play of the bass from Rich Gray (Annihilator) and Dominic Forest Lapointe (First Fragment) that is omnipresent and funky on each and every song. To top it all off is the piano (perhaps from Jiménez), giving the music some gravitas with the technical, concert-style playing. This record is just plain bonkers and tons of fun. Given this is the debut from a young musician, the idea that Brainblast has room to grow is plenty exciting.

COLOSSUS SUPREMA by BRAINBLAST

Gods of Gaia // Escape the Wonderland [November 28th, 2025 – Self Released]

If you’ve been eagerly awaiting the next SepticFlesh release, Germany’s Gods of Gaia have got you covered. Founded in 2023 by Kevin Sierra Eifert, Gods of Gaia is made up of an anonymous collective from around the world, contributing to a dark, heavy, and aggressive form of symphonic metal. Their sophomore album, Escape the Wonderland, features a collection of death metal songs with plenty of orchestral arrangements that add a dramatic flair. Along with crushing riffs and thunderous blast beats, you’ll hear choral chants (“Escape the Wonderland,” “Burn for Me”), bits of piano (“What It Takes”), and plenty of cinematic symphonics. SepticFlesh is the obvious influence, but the grandiosity of Fleshgod Apocalypse flares up on cuts like the dramatic “Rise Up.” The front half is largely aggressive, with “What It Takes” taking the energy to thrash levels. The back half dials down the energy, even creeping to near doom on “Krieg in Mir,” but never pulls back on the heaviness. Cool as the symphonic elements are, the riffs, blast beats, and brutal vocal delivery are just as impressive. Make no mistake, this is melodic death metal above all else, with symphonic seasonings that elevate it a notch. Just the opposite of what the record title suggests, this is one wonderland you won’t want to escape.

Escape the Wonderland by Gods of Gaia

Grin Reaper’s Frozen Feast

Hounds of Bayanay // КЭМ [November 15, 2025 – Self Released]

Two-and-a-half years after dropping debut Legends of the North, Hounds of Bayanay returns with КЭМ to sate your eternal lust for folk metal.1 Blending heavy metal with folk instrumentation, specifically kyrympa2 and khomus,3 as well as throat singing, Hounds of Bayanay might sound like a Tengger Cavalry or The Hu knockoff, but you’ll do yourself a disservice by writing them off. Boldly enunciated, clarion cleans belt out in confident proclamations while grittier refrains and overtones resonate beneath, proffering assorted and engaging vocal stylings. Rather than dwelling overlong in strings and tribal chanting, the deft fusion of folk instruments with traditional metal defines Hounds’ sound and feels cohesively integrated on КЭМ, providing an intimate yet heavy backdrop to a hook-laden and alluringly replayable thirty-nine minutes. In addition to the eclectic folk influence, there’s a satisfying variety of songwriting from track to track, with “Ardaq,” “Cɯsqa:n,” and “Dɔʃɔrum” exemplifying the enticing synthesis of styles. More than anything else, Hounds of Bayanay embodies heart and fun, warming my chilly days with a well-executed platter of Eastern-influenced folk metal. Don’t skip this one, or the decision could hound you.

KEM by Hounds Of Bayanay

Blood Red Throne // Siltskin [December 05, 2025 – Soulseller Records]

I’m shoving up against the deadline to wedge this one in, but Blood Red Throne’s latest deserves a mention, and bulldozing is just the sort of thing you should do while listening to BRT’s brand of bludgeoning, pit-stomping romp. Back in December, the venerable Norwegian death metal act dropped twelfth album Siltskin, maintaining their prolific and consistent release schedule. In addition to their dependable output, BRT stays the course with pummeling, brutish pomp. In his coverage of Nonagon and Imperial Congregation, Doc Grier drums up comparisons to Old Man’s Child, Panzerchrist, and Hypocrisy, and while I’m not inclined to disagree on those points, I’ll add that Siltskin also harkens to Kill-era Cannibal Corpse in its slick coalition of mid-paced slammers, warp-speed blitzes, and fat ‘n’ frolicking bass. Add to that the sly, sticky melody from the likes of Sentenced’s North from Here (“Vestigial Remnants”), and you’ve got a recipe for a righteous forty-five-minute smash-a-thon. Blood Red Throne’s last few records have been among their best, which is an incredible feat for a band this far into their career. While Siltskin doesn’t surpass BRT’s high-water mark, it keeps up, and if you’re hungry for an aural beatdown, then Blood Red Throne would like to throw their crown into the ring for consideration.

Siltskin by Blood Red Throne

Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu // Immortality [December 17, 2025 – Bang the Head Records]

I am woefully late to the charms of Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu, a Japanese death metal outfit prominently featuring slap ‘n’ pop bass. Had it not been for our trusty Flippered Friend, I might have continued this grievous injustice of ignorance, but thankfully, this is not the timeline to which I’m doomed. Immortality is Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu’s seventh album, and those who enjoy the band’s previous work should remain satisfied. For new acolytes, Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu grasps the rabid intensity of Vader and Krisiun and imbues it with a funky edge. Meaty bass rumbles and sprightly slapped accents, provided by bassist/vocalist Haruhisa Takahata, merge with Kouki Akita’s kit obliteration to establish a thunderous, unrelenting rhythm section. Atop the lower end’s heft, Keiichi Enjouji shreds and squeals with thrashy vigor and a keen understanding of melody. First proper track “Anima Immortalis” even includes gang intonations that work so well, I wish they were more prevalent across the album. The sum total of Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu’s atmosphere is one of plucky exuberance that strikes with the force of a roundhouse kick to the dome. Had I discovered it sooner, Immortality would have qualified for a 2025 year-end honorable mention, as I haven’t been able to stop spinning it or the band’s prior releases.4 Though I’m still in the honeymoon phase, I expect this platter to live on in my listening, and recommend you not miss this GTK killer like I almost did.

Thus Spoke’s Random Revelations

The Algorithm // Recursive Infinity [November 21st, 2025 – Self Released]

I’ve been a fan of The Algorithm since the early days, back when their electronica-djent was almost twee in its experimental joy, spliced with light-hearted samples. Over the years, Rémi Gallego has tuned his flair for mesmeric, playful compositions to develop a richer, more streamlined sound. Recursive Infinity continues the recent upward trend Data Renaissance began. With riffs and rhythms the slickest since Brute Force, and melodies the brightest and most colourful since equally-prettily adorned Polymorphic Code, it’s a cyberpunk tour-de-force. The wildness is trained, chunky heaviness grounding magnetic melodies (“Race Condition,” “Mutex,” “By Design”), dense chugging transitioning seamlessly into techno (“Advanced Iteration Technique,” “Hollowing,” “Graceful Degradation), and adding bite to bubbly, candy-coloured soundscapes (“Rainbow Table,”). The skittering of breakbeats tempers synthwave (“Endless Iteration), and bright pulses wrap cascading electro-core (“Race Condition,” “Mutex”) and orchestral melodrama (“Recursive Infinity”). It’s often strongly reminiscent of some point in The Algorithm’s history, but everything is upgraded from charming to entrancing. This provides a new way to interpret Recursive Infinity: not just a reference to an endless loop in general, but to Boucle Infinie (Infinite Loop)—Remi’s other musical project—and by extension, The Algorithm themselves. Yet he is still experimenting, including vocoder vocals (“Endless Iteration,” “By Design”) for a surprisingly successful dark-Daft Punk vibe in slower, moodier moments. With nostalgic throwbacks transformed so beautifully, and the continued evolution, there’s simply no way I can ignore The Algorithm now. And neither should you.

Recursive Infinity by The Algorithm

Owlswald’s Holiday Scraps

Sun of the Suns // Entanglement [December 12th, 2025 – Scarlet Records]

Bands and labels take heed—We reserve December for two things: Listurnalia and celebrating another trip around the sun. It is not for releasing new music. Yet this blunder persists, ensuring we inevitably miss gems like Sun of the Suns’ sophomore effort, Entanglement.5 The record dropped just as the world was tuning out for the year, and it deserves much better. Building on the foundation of their 2021 debut, TIIT, the Italian trio has significantly beefed up their progressive death formula. Mixing tech-death articulation with deathcore brutality, Entanglement ensures fans of Fallujah will feel right at home with its effervescent clean melodies and crystalline textures. Francesca Paoli (Fleshgod Apocalypse) returns to provide another masterclass behind the kit with rapid-fire double-bass, blasts, and tom fills, while guitarists Marco Righetti and Ludovico Cioffi deliver cosmic shredding and radiant solos that are both technical and deliberate. While the early tracks lean into Fallujahian songcraft and Tesseract-style arpeggios, the album shines brightest late when the group largely sheds its stylistic orbit. “Please, Blackout My Eyes” pivots toward a majestic Aeternam vibe with ethereal tech-death incisiveness, while “One With the Sun” and “The Void Where Sound Ends Its Path” hit like a sledgehammer with Xenobiotic’s deathcore grooves. Though Luca Dave Scarlatti’s vocals lack differentiation, the sheer quality of the compositions carries the weight, proving Sun of the Suns are much more than mere clones.

Entanglement by Sun Of The Suns

Elettra Storm – Evertale Review

Italy has a well-established power metal scene, particularly the ostentatious Rhapsody of Fire and the dazzling Frozen Crown.…
#NewsBeep #News #Music #2.5 #2025 #BattleBeast #CelineDion #ElettraStorm #Entertainment #Evertale #FrozenCrown #Hardrock #IdinaMenzel #ItalianMetal #Oct25 #PowerMetal #review #Reviews #RhapsodyofFire #ScarletRecords #UK #UnitedKingdom #UnleashtheArchers #Wilderun
https://www.newsbeep.com/uk/227662/

Elettra Storm – Evertale Review

By ClarkKent

Italy has a well-established power metal scene, particularly the ostentatious Rhapsody of Fire and the dazzling Frozen Crown. Looking to make a foothold in this scene is Elettra Storm with the release of their sophomore album, Evertale. While it may look like a strange word for those not fluent in Italian, Elettra comes from the Greek mythological figure, Electra/Elektra. It also serves as a root word for electricity, which helps explain both the odd-sounding band name and the storm surrounding the head of the woman on the cover. This quintet isn’t looking to reinvent the cheese wheel; they just want to write some catchy songs and give their lead singer, Crystal Emiliani, a chance to show off her pipes. Do they have that spark to set the power metal world on fire?

While people like to tease that Wilderun is Disney metal, if Disney were to actually sign a metal artist, they would likely sound like Elettra Storm. They straddle the line between power metal and hard rock mixed with some pop. They don’t quite bring the dance vibes like Battle Beast, but their power metal also isn’t as aggressive or hard-hitting as Frozen Crown. Guitar riffs and drum beats are relatively muted, though not without a lively energy, as Elettra Storm largely plays it safe instrumentally. Instead, they rely on the strength of their frontwoman, and Emiliani delivers. She channels a mix of Disney-friendly pop artists from Idina Menzel to Celine Dion. On “Blue Phoenix,” I half-expected Emiliani to break out into “Let it go” when she buoyantly sings the refrain “And rise again,” while “Secrets of the Universe” has a moment where her voice briefly brought me back to that titanic hit from decades ago.

For power metal of this caliber to work, the choruses need to be catchy, but on this score, Evertale is a mixed bag. It’s not that the choruses are a miss, but that they’re often forgettable. It doesn’t help that the lyrics tend to be convoluted. On “Hero Among Heroes,” Emiliani sings “Hero among heroes / Rise the sword up in the sky / Strong of arm and mind”—this ESL tendency hampers catchiness. Evertale also suffers a general lack of hooks. For the most part, riffs are bland, standard rock fare, and melodies are nil. Opener “Endgame” has some hooky synths, but Elettra Storm rarely returns to them on the rest of the record. “Master of Fairytales” also shows potential when it opens with energetic blast beats and a decent chorus, but the song drops that energy the rest of the way. “Blue Phoenix,” on the other hand, is proof they have the capability of writing really good power metal. It has Evertale’s most creative riffs, a consistent level of energy, and a chorus that soars in a dazzling display like the mythological bird. In the end, Elettra Storm could learn a lot from studying stalwarts of catchy power metal like Unleash the Archers.

Elettra Storm actually feels most at home on the lone track that’s geared more towards pop than metal: “One Last Ray of Light.” This tune eschews the usual power metal trappings of noodly riffs and high energy. It features a piano and what sounds like a mandolin playing a lovely melody.1 Then the chorus hits and the real magic happens. Emiliani’s voice rises to a beautiful lilt as she belts out the catchiest chorus on Evertale. The song is a certifiable banger, and it is also where Elettra Storm sounds most comfortable. Between this and “Blue Phoenix,” Elettra Storm have it in them to write some great power metal—if only they could apply these successes to the rest of Evertale.

The end result is an album that is pleasantly bland, with tracks ranging from forgettable to slightly above average, as well as a couple that are quite good. I won’t deny that I sometimes find myself whistling a random tune like “Judgment Time” while I’m out and about. Evertale hits that sweet spot between power metal and adult pop/rock where it could find an audience in either genre. Elettra Storm provides an electric vocalist, a little bit of guitar noodling, and radio rock song structures that make it a pleasant in-the-moment listen. But the record fails to take many risks or hit many of the highs the genre is capable of. Instead, it plays things a little too safe and doesn’t quite live up to its elettra-fying name.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: October 24th, 2025

#25 #2025 #BattleBeast #CelineDion #ElettraStorm #Evertale #FrozenCrown #HardRock #IdinaMenzel #ItalianMetal #Oct25 #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #RhapsodyOfFire #ScarletRecords #UnleashTheArchers #Wilderun

Glasya – Fear Review

By Twelve

It’s been a fair minute since Glasya last graced these parts. The Portuguese symphonic power metal band first appeared in these halls in 2019 with their debut, Heaven’s Demise. I was personally not impressed, I’m sad to say—it offered little in the way of originality, and my feeling was that Glasya sounded like a hodgepodge of their contemporaries. Still, the band is one of genuinely talented musicians, and I believed at the time the project had promise. Six years later, they’re onto their third full-length, Fear, and I couldn’t help taking a look, curious simply to know if Glasya has come into its own in 2025.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Fear still sounds like it’s been influenced by the same bands that have been influencing symphonic power metal for the last two decades. My promo sheet even informs me that the music is ideal for fans of Nightwish, Epica, and Visions of Atlantis. So straightaway, you have a good idea of what you’re getting: big orchestrations, operatic flourishes, more focus on keys than guitars. Songs are upbeat, choruses are big, and Eduarda Soeiro’s vocal performance is impressively grand. But I can’t claim Glasya has no clear identity anymore. The fast pace (see “Hunt of the Haunted” and “In Debris”) reminds me of Silver Bullet, and there’s definite aggression to the guitars (Hugo Esteves and Bruno Prates) that gets the head nodding early and often. Davon van Dave’s orchestrations are both more elaborate and dialled back, making them feel better merged with the music. On Fear, Glasya sound more confident and more self-assured than I’ve heard before, and it’s a great change from their debut.

Fear is a concept album that follows a woman confronted by and overcoming her fears, and, unexpectedly, it’s here that I start to find fault. The decision to embed a narrative into the music is a fine one, and one Glasya have employed before, but there are two particular elements of Fear that detract from the experience for me, both of which seem to point back to it being a concept album. The first is the voice acting. Eleven of Fear’s fourteen songs begin with between five and thirty seconds of story in the form of voice acting. Talented musicians our singers may be, but these segments feel cheesy and forced, at best breaking the flow of the songs and at worst being an active distraction. The penultimate scene, in “The Ultimate Challenge,” introduces a new character who heroically sacrifices himself for our protagonist in a moment that could be moving were it not so jarring—or confusing.

The second is the length. With fourteen songs, Fear clocks in at sixty-six minutes, a mighty length that makes the back half feel tired. There just isn’t enough variety in the sound to justify so much music. Further, songs like “Stuck in a Cobweb” feel longer than they need to be, with interludes that slows down otherwise bombastic tracks to enunciate narrative lyrics. For the first half of Fear, I find I’m really enjoying myself, but after a while, the intricate keys start to sound the same, the exciting riffs blend together, and no matter when you check the runtime, there are still somehow five tracks to go. The back half isn’t bad by any stretch—”In a Flooding Room” and “The Cold of Dark” are a particularly effective duo—but it feels weighed down by itself. As it runs on, I notice that Antonio Durães’s bass and Bruno Ramos’s drums are too quiet to lift up “The Ultimate Challenge.” I get to “The Confrontation” and feel like I’ve heard its riff somewhere before. It’s a real shame, too—alone, the material is strong, but it feels like Glasya made decisions in service of their concept that bring the experience down.

There is a very strong 40-minute album in Fear. In fact, if it simply ended with “Rescue,” I think it would be a much better experience. That’s a hard thing to write—we love “less is more” at Angry Metal Guy, but I’m still sad to say that I could have given Glasya a higher score if there was just less of Fear. As is, I can only say that it is an improvement from Heaven’s Demise, that I will be coming back to some isolated tracks, and that I am still eager to hear what this band does next.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: scarletrecords.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/GlasyaOfficial
Releases Worldwide: October 24th, 2025

#25 #2025 #Epica #fear #Glasya #Nightwish #Oct25 #PortugeseMetal #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #SilverBullet #SymphonicMetal #VisionsOfAtlantis

https://www.europesays.com/uk/445857/ Terra Atlantica – Oceans Review #1.5 #2025 #Entertainment #fellowship #FolkMetal #GermanMetal #Mozart #music #Oceans #PirateMetal #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #Sep25 #SymphonicMetal #TerraAtlantica #TwilightForce #UK #UnitedKingdom

Terra Atlantica – Oceans Review

I had almost forgotten about German four-banger Terra Atlantica since I last covered them five years ago. Once…
#NewsBeep #News #US #USA #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesOfAmerica #Music #1.5 #2025 #Entertainment #fellowship #FolkMetal #GermanMetal #Mozart #oceans #PirateMetal #PowerMetal #review #reviews #ScarletRecords #Sep25 #SymphonicMetal #TerraAtlantica #TwilightForce
https://www.newsbeep.com/us/176284/

Terra Atlantica – Oceans Review

By Kenstrosity

I had almost forgotten about German four-banger Terra Atlantica since I last covered them five years ago. Once my memory refreshed, I recalled what compelled me to snag Age of Steam in the first place: my love for steampunk. Far from the most dedicated—and perhaps even farther away from the best—piece of media based on that universe, Terra Atlantica nonetheless did sound appropriately grounded in a world propelled by superheated water. But their songwriting was too inconsistent to make a big splash with this sponge. With follow-up Oceans in tow, is their hope that Terra Atlantica will hoist my sails properly this time?

With a new lead guitarist, Terra Atlantica finds themselves armed with a more folk-driven base that sends their sea-faring stories even further into open water than ever before. Veering into jaunty pirate metal territory, Oceans boasts a wide variety of baubles and decorative deviations scattered around their cookie-cutter power metal foundation. Terra Atlantica’s unusually reedy vocals carry over from the last record, evoking a certain Muppet-y personality that I don’t hate, but which many could. Canned strings and horns make a resurgence as well, pushing Oceans deeper into symphonic territory. In short, Oceans is as cheesy a power metal record as can be without being Fellowship, only without even half the songwriting acumen.

In fact, songwriting is Oceans’ greatest downfall. Numbers that could’ve been great on their own merit find themselves stranded by downright infuriating choices. The greatest offenders are “Hoist the Sail,” ruined almost immediately once Terra Atlantica cribs the legendary “The Rake Hornpipe” for an overlong bridge and solo; and overblown closer “Oceans of Eternity,” which once again copies and pastes more than one segment from a piece of well-known classical music1 to pad its runtime without doing anything meaningful with them. Outside of those rage-inducing moments, though, there’s still very little substance to Oceans. Due to its dogged reliance on basic genre building blocks and banal lyrics, Oceans is effectively wall-to-wall tropes and fairytale pirate stereotypes (“Back to the Sea,” “Where My Brothers Await,” “Land of Submarines”).

Indeed, Oceans reminds me of a metallized The Muppet Treasure Island soundtrack, minus that masterpiece’s compositional excellence. Nonetheless, flashes of brilliance give me some hope that Terra Atlantica have the potential to write showstoppers worthy of positive comparisons to that iconic OST. “Raven in the Dark,” for example, might be the album’s strongest whole song, pumping a stadium-ready melody and boasting a sticky chorus and fun hair-metal solo. “Caribbean Shores,” too, maximizes its fun factor with a novel bit of tropical songwriting not often heard in power metal, unless you are Twilight Force. Additionally, I do appreciate the injection of real heft and a vaguely thrashy personality in “Turn of the Tide.” If these novelties and convincing attributes were integrated more successfully into a greater portion of Ocean’s runtime, the record would feel quite a bit different than what metal fans have been taught to expect from the symphonic power scene.

Unfortunately, Terra Atlantica only reinforce what metal fans learned to dread. To wit, a dearth of musical creativity in relation to material density, an overt abuse of classical standbys in the place of what should be original material (or at least a creative use of reference), and clear and present stereotyping in writing, theme, and lyrical content. What little hints of potential Terra Atlantica leave for listeners across Oceans’ relatively tight 49 minutes do not make up for the burden of uninspiring, sometimes outright annoying, material offered. Steer clear of this if you know what’s good for you, lads!

Rating: Bad
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: terra-atlantica.de | facebook.com/terraatlantica
Releases Worldwide: September 26th, 2025

Show 1 footnote

1. We all know each of these melodies well, and I am almost completely sure they’re Mozart, but I cannot for the life of me find the name of the composition they’re from. ↩

#15 #2025 #Fellowship #FolkMetal #GermanMetal #Mozart #Oceans #PirateMetal #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #Sep25 #SymphonicMetal #TerraAtlantica #TwilightForce

Stuck in the Filter: April 2025’s Angry Misses

By Kenstrosity

The cicadas have passed, the brood has bred. And now, it’s all being washed away by a constant deluge of heavy rain and hail amidst thunderous storm of increasing intensity. I imagine those skyborne rumblings shudder every wall of the ducts where my minions toil. I am sure they are frightened, claustrophobic, and soaked. And yet, they persist under my demanding and ruthless management—all so you can have more of what you already get every day in these halls.

Show your appreciation for what we bring to you, and enjoy ov deep Filter!

Kenstrosity’s Biblically-Accurate Beast

Ancient Death // Ego Dissolution [April 18th, 2025 – Profound Lore Records]

A lot of people pine for Death. We know this due to the sheer number of Death worship acts out there, most of which operate eternally under that legend’s shadow. Less common, however, are acts of worship in the service of underground-er heroes The Chasm. Thankfully, Massachusetts death metal quartet Ancient Death take on this mantle, blending much Death and The Chasm inspo with their own curated, abyssal sound. Everything here hearkens back to the ways of olde, but updated to feel relevant in the modern era. Such as this is the case, opening salvos “Ego Dissolution” and “Breaking the Barriers of Hope” strike while the iron is hot, piercing through all expectation with sharp riffs, evolving passages, and dynamic shifts in structure. So effective is this attack strategy that even instrumental aberrations like “Journey to the Inner Soul” feel story driven and purposeful. Standout tracks like “Breathe – Transcend (Into the Glowing Streams of Forever),” “Echoing Chambers Within the Dismal Mind,” and “Unspoken Earth” steal the show, however, boasting Ancient Death’s best riffs, a downright surprising display of vocal versatility, and disgusting solos and dive bombs. It needs time and dedicated spins to bloom and come alive, though, which may discourage listeners hoping for a cheap fix. But trust me, it’s worth the investment!

Killjoy’s Flavorful Feasts

Malphas // Extinct [April 11th, 2025 – Soulseller Records]

If I’m to enjoy no-frills black metal, it needs to have lots of hooks. In this sense, Switzerland’s Malphas had their priorities straight while writing Extinct. Their melodic guitar leads may not be as exuberant or exaggerated as, say, Moonlight Sorcery’s, but they have a thrashy flair which is just as much fun. Once the riffs captured my attention, they reeled me in for a battering vocal assault of coarse barks and spiteful snarls. Drummer Jöschu Käser (also of Aara and many others) can play seemingly any rhythm or tempo, best exemplified across the entirety of “Butcher’s Broom.” This is key for Malphas to prove they have the nuance to pull off mid-paced tempos (“Majestic Moon,” “Consumed,” “Armada Christi”), a quality that I find important in black metal. There are a few neat little surprises as well, like the piano section midway through “Majestic Moon” and the icy synths popping up momentarily in the instrumental closer “Astral Dissonance.” Fans of engaging and catchy meloblack won’t want to miss out on Extinct.

Svnth // Pink Noise Youth [April 18th, 2025 – These Hands Melt]

You’ve likely heard of white noise, but what about its counterpart, pink noise? Whereas white noise contains equal amounts of all frequencies audible to humans, pink noise favors lower frequencies and is generally considered to be easier on the ears. Likewise, Pink Noise Youth, Svnth’s fourth album, is a remarkably pleasant listen. This unassuming post-black group from Rome, Italy has evolved considerably since Cherd’s review of 2020’s Spring in Blue. The familiar glossy guitar tremolos and chords now have an unexpected companion: the electric sitar. This newcomer is mainly supportive, with stray notes and lines drizzled atop the already dreamy guitars for extra sweetness. There are spicier moments, too, like the punky riffs and d-beats peppered with rasping barks that kick off “Winter Blues.” There’s also a much greater prevalence of clean singing this time around, Rodolfo Ciuffo’s hypnotic intonation complements the chunky post-metal of “Perfume” as easily as the carefree guitar strumming in “Nairoby Lullaby.” Gone are the overlong, meandering tracks of before; Pink Noise Youth gets straight to the point with sharper songs hovering in the 5-minute range across a tight 37 minutes in total. Svnth seem determined to make the post-black genre their own and, by all indications, it’s working.

Owlswald’s Wide-Eyed Wonders

Game Over // Face the End [April 25th, 2025 – Scarlet Records]

In the absolutely loaded month that was April, two records surprised these owl ears enough to earn regular spots in my playlist. First up is Game Over’s sixth full-length, Face the End. These Italian thrashers have been peddling their version of the Bay Area sound since 2009, yet this is somehow my first encounter with them. Following the departure of co-founder/bassist/vocalist Renato Chiccoli, Game Over revamped its lineup, bringing in Danny Schiavina on vocals and Leonard Molinari on bass. This refreshed five-piece delivers a newly polished sound, making Face the End the most fun I’ve had with a thrash album in recent memory. “Grip of Time,” “Weaving Fate” and “Veil of Insanity” showcase Game Over’s mastery of Testament and Exodus-level aggression while “Neck Breaking Dance” offers a light-hearted pit call reminiscent of early Anthrax. Alessandro Sansone’s and Luca Zironi’s fast and forceful down-picking, melodic leads and flashy solos run over Anthony Dantone’s rock-solid drumming, all within a crisp and powerful production with ample punch. Schiavina’s charismatic, high-flying vocals immediately grab your attention on “Lust for Blood,” never relinquishing their grasp as they transmit their 70s and 80s horror-inspired themes above abundant gang vocals. In a genre plagued by inconsistency, Face the End is everything I want my thrash to be—aggressive, dynamic and fun.

Kiritsis // Kiritsis [April 4th, 2025 – Wise Blood Records/Pout Records]

Next up is the ruthless sludge and hardcore of Kiritsis. I hope you checked your fun at the door because this Indianapolis-based quartet isn’t here to make friends. Formed by members of Trenches, Hatesong, and Sundown, Kiritsis’ self-titled debut is here to punch you square in the face and take your lunch money. Over the course of thirty-one minutes, this foursome bludgeons listeners with uncompromisingly heavy doses of abrasive distortion, hard-hitting beats and pure unadulterated anger, all slathered in a blackened layer of Carcass-like filth. Blake Henry’s roars and rasps tear through your speakers with pure vitriol and torment, perfectly complementing Eric Mason’s grim riffing, Bill Scott’s demonic bass growls and Nik Jensen’s weighty drum strikes. “Like the Taste,” “Pissant” and “Deny.Defend.Dispose” embody a Will Haven spirit with a barrage of penetrating, assaulting riffs and pounding half-time slams underpinning Henry’s blood-curdling screams. Meanwhile, the sorrowful and doom-tinged “It Ain’t Easy” and “Thieves and Fools” drag you into anguish-ridden depths, draped in their dark, hopeless atmospheres and plodding facades. You won’t find any overly technical or flashy music here—this is pure hatred and loathing in a tight, cathartic package, meant to blast at high volume while you fuck shit up.

Tyme’s Grungy Gift

Melvins 1983 // Thunderball [April 18th, 2025 – Ipecac Recordings]

Hot on the heels and building off of 2024’s Tarantula Heart, stalwart grunge/sludge rock icon Buzz Osborne has teamed back up with original drummer Mike Dillard for Melvins 1983‘s third release and first in four years, Thunderball. This time around, Osborne and Dillard have partnered with experimental electronic artists Void Manes and Ni Maîtres to deliver yet another in a long line of inimitable, don’t-give-a-fuck-what-you-think releases that have become synonymous with the Melvins brand. As influential a band as any going right now on sludgy noise rock emanating from garages across the world, I take note anytime a new Melvins project hits shelves. With Thunderball, Buzz ‘n company have delivered another tasty morsel packed with some o’ that Houdini-sweet heaviness (“King of Rome”) that sweats grunge like “Negative Creep.” A merging of shimmery post-rock with punky garage rock and bass-laden disso-doom that meanders to a close in a wash of plodding riffs and bleep-bloop electronics, “Victory of the Pyramids” is a decent summation of what you’ll find lurking around most of Thunderball‘s thirty-four minute, five track corners, as Void Manes and Ni Maîtres don’t so much enhance as they incorporate their particular brand of electronica into Thunderball‘s sonic aesthetic. As a newcomer still assimilating into the Melvin hive mind here at AMG, I still have the independent lock-step wherewithal to recommend Melvins 1983‘s Thunderball to those who might have missed it.

Dolphin Whisperer’s Ample Acquisitions

Emma Goldman // All You Are Is We [April 28th, 2025 – Zegema Beach Records]

Sassy is as sassy does or somethin’ like that. If you were wondering whether anarchist icon Emma Goldman came back to life to front a mathcore band, I’m sorry to report that that is not the case. However, if you’re in the ballpark for Canadian punks speedballin’ through skronked-out, strung-out chorus barks with a hundred words trapped in ten seconds, then Emma Goldman will be your ticket to a hot psych ward summer.1 From working class psychosis (“i don’t think much at all,” “this is your brain on minimum wage”) to patchwork insomniac ramblings as loaded as the cut-and-scan cover collage (“at rock bottom i was a piss girl,” “that is the land of lost content”), vocalist Victoria delivers a shredded flurry of barks, nags, and cries that pierce straight through the boomy mix. And though the rhythm guitars and bass pulse and industrial cracklings (particularly the two interlude scratches) register on the lower end of the sound spectrum, a fluid twang and tight, clanging snare find an abrasive balance throughout—two broken tones make a right. In under half an hour, All You Are Is We both breezes by in its effortless flow and brandishes passersby with heart-stained tirades and boiled-over emotion. Along with modern acts like Massa Nera and Blind Girls, Emma Goldman in bold, romantic, and unsettled rage makes a strong case for how true skramz can continue to evolve through rich musicianship, progressive leanings, all while maintaining an adherence to post-indebted builds (“it rubs the boycott ketchup on its brand new slacks,” “that is the land…”). And with a dollop more of that cathartic and capturing energy, Emma Goldman may yet charge with the notoriety of its namesake at the front of this genre pack.

Sonum // The Obscure Light Awaits [April 11th, 2025 – Dusktone]

As a product of a previous filter fetching, I had hoped to provide a lengthier statement on my enjoyment of Sonum’s sophomore outing The Obscure Light Awaits. You see, this Italian act has a knack for supplying death metal that holds true to the origins of dark and twisted riffage while still pushing at edges of richer composition in hypnotic rhythms. As a second attempt at deathly glory, The Obscure Light Awaits shows studio knowledge growth in a drum sound that highlights expansive cymbal textures and quick-turn tom rolls that power the mood-driven world in which Sonum inhabits. And in post-growing melodic builds—the kind of atmosphere that leans dissonant like the Ulcerate-channeling broodings of Devenial Verdict—Sonum shows that mood can swell and explode on the backs of horror-tinged orchestral accompaniment and creaking refrains (“Trapped in the Labyrinth of Aberration,” “Nobody Is Innocent”). Trimmed to a three-piece set for The Obscure Light Awaits, the focus that borders on self-similarity on this extended-length journey feels both intimate and indulgent—the closing psychedelic jam session certainly leans on the latter feeling. But with churning tremolo runs that lead to gruff-toned cries, the majority of what Sonum brings to the table lands in consistent and crushing effort (“In This Void We Dwell,” “Messenger of Cosmic Dread”). As a band still finding their footing in the grander scheme of the death metal universe, Sonum has a sense of identity that gives them a fighting edge. And though The Obscure Light Awaits wears its unique vision a little loose at the waist, its journey is well worth exploring.

Zmarłym // Wielkie Zanikanie [April 18th, 2025 – Godz of War Productions]

Once upon a time, Zmarłym fancied themselves a Polish sadboi act whose turmoil was wrapped in the urban decay of early COVID lockdown measures. And now that we’ve all stepped some distance—a safe distance you might say—away from that reality, Zmarłym has learned that the sad doesn’t dissipate quite that easily. Wielkie Zanikanie finds a familiar malaise in isolation, frustration, and a general defeated nature wrapped up in a longing black metal wane with post-punk and progressive undertones, much like you’d find on a record like Voice’s Frightened or Cursebinder’s Drifting. Blaring synth throbs give way to entrancing drum patterns and phase-shifting vocal howls (“Miejsca,” “Bunt maszyn”). Classic tremolo flurries raze playful energy to set the stage for sinister, blood-soaked cries (“Sny o lataniu,” “Plamy II”). And though a goofy mid-album Killing Joke-indebted romp—even a switch to heavy accent English from the brooding native tongue—threatens to break the sinister ambiance that Zmarłym explores throughout the rest of Wielkie Zanikanie, its soft and bouncy inclusions still find layering amongst smoldering black metal riffage. And as all elements come to join hands in the space-bound, synth squealing crescendo of the closing title track, Zmarłym has delivered an experience full of variety and surprise, curated to bore a hole into a mind searching for melancholy with a sense of adventure and play.

#2025 #Aara #AllYouAreIsWe #AmericanMetal #AncientDeath #Anthrax #Apr25 #BlackMetal #BlindGirls #Carcass #Cursebinder #Death #DeathMetal #DevenialVerdict #Dusktone #EgoDissolution #EmmaGoldman #Exodus #Extinct #FaceTheEnd #GameOver #GodzOfWarProductions #Grunge #Hardcore #Hatesong #IpecacRecordings #ItalianMetal #KillingJoke #Kirtisis #Malphas #MassaNera #Mathcore #MelodicBlackMetal #Melvins #Melvins1983 #Metal #MoonlightSorcery #NiMaîtres #PinkNoiseYouth #PolishMetal #PostBlackMetal #postPunk #PoutRecords #ProfoundLoreRecords #ProgressiveDeathMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #Screamo #Sludge #SludgeMetal #SludgeRock #Sonum #SoulsellerRecords #StuckInTheFilter #StuckInTheFilter2025 #Sundown #Svnth #Swiss #Testament #TheChasm #TheObscureLightAwaits #TheseHandsMelt #ThrashMetal #Thunderball #Trenches #Ulcerate #Voices #VoidManes #WielkieZanikanie #WillHaven #WiseBloodRecords #ZegemaBeachRecords #Zmarłym

The 7th Guild – Triumviro Review

By Kenstrosity

To compare your band to The Three Tenors is a bold move, to say the least. By making this connection, you inherently pit yourself against three of the greatest opera singers of their time (at the very least three of the most well-known). Yet, this is exactly how SkeleToon‘s Tomi Fooler describes his freshly minted supergroup, The 7th Guild, in anticipation of their debut full-length Triumviro. Boasting his own voice in tandem with Giacomo Voli (Rhapsody of Fire) and Ivan Giannini (Vision Divine, Derdian), Tomi’s latest project attempts a symphonic power metal triple threat of the same legendary caliber as the aforementioned Tenors. It takes gumption to attempt that feat. Can The 7th Guild win over the Kendom?

The short answer is no. With nothing substantial to distinguish this project from the pool of power from which it draws deep, Triumviro proffers a particularly earnest and passionate form of overblown, hyper-melodic symphocheese. Positivity and bleeding heart melodramatics abound, surrounded by a blunderbuss of horns, keys, strings, and a too-thin layer of guitars hell-bent on proselytizing the virtues of the power chord. Unlike equally opulent acts like Twilight Force and Fellowship, The 7th Guild epitomizes the generic at every stage, so much so that at times, it is difficult even to distinguish any of the three vocalists from each other (save for one member who possesses an especially nasal, though not altogether unpleasant, tone). Nonetheless, it’s a formula that works and has worked for decades, which means that despite myself, Triumviro thrust a few of its best moments deep in my brain.

The 7th Guild are at their best when singing in their native Italian. Lush as the most richly layered Fleshgod Apocalypse magnum opus, “La Promessa Cremisi” revels in decadent vocal layers, a million heavily rolled ‘r’s, cinematic orchestrations, and a sky-high soaring chorus riding on the rippling back muscles of a classic power metal gallop. Insertions of Italian scattered throughout the excessive “Glorious” help offset its cringe-inducing, but sticky “YOU’RE MAKIN’ ME GLOOOOOOOOOORRRRIIOOOOUS” refrain. “In Nomine Patris” exudes regality in its fanfare, marching forth with an operatic pre-chorus followed immediately by a triumphant chorus that would be right at home on any Twilight Force epic. As if this wasn’t enough, a delightful high-octane guitar solo launches the final third in dramatic fashion, giving the final chorus the momentum it needed to justify its inclusion in the song’s six-plus-minute span. It is moments like these, among a few others spotting this forty-eight-minute runtime, that make Triumviro enjoyable and fun, at least for a moment.

Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of Triumviro’s successes are ephemeral, too easily overshadowed by lackluster power metal sullied further by saccharine writing and unchecked vocal exhibitions. Ballad “Time” is delicate and fluffy, but having three singers of functionally identical tone and range wailing in concert with the soaring lead guitar flattens the entire piece to the point of collapse. A total lack of tonal and textural depth persists throughout the back half of the record, continually fumbling moves that could’ve made a lasting impression. “Guardians of Eternity” borders on annoying, its vocal layering creating cacophony as one singer chooses to hold notes longer than the rest at arbitrary points, while another comes in a fraction too late to line up properly in the arrangement. Later on, one of the vocalists makes an unhinged choice attempting an operatic run in the style of Tarja Turunen. Not only does this moment clash against already tepid songwriting with its poor execution, but it also illustrates the competitive, rather than cooperative, nature of The 7th Guild’s vocal performances. Furthermore, this egregious showboating behavior puts a spotlight on the oversimplified, underutilized metallic instrumentation in the background, as demonstrated by the overwrought “The Metal Charade.” Closer “Fairy Tale” doesn’t fare much better as the over-performed, nasal balladry dominates the soundscape with questionable choices and strained reaches, all in the name of bombast.

The most damning aspect of The 7th Guild’s troubled debut is the impression it leaves with this listener. After the dust settles and I lay Triumviro to rest, I breathe a heavy sigh of relief. Its first five songs aren’t that bad, and two of those are arguably good. But even those can’t escape the problems pervading the entire record. Moreover, its second half is a clinic on what not to do, from writing to performance, on a symphonic power metal record. In short, right now The 7th Guild are closer to The Three Tricksters than The Three Tenors.

Rating: Bad
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 160 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Website: facebook.com/the7thguild
Releases Worldwide: February 21st, 2025

#15 #2025 #Derdian #Feb25 #Fellowship #ItalianMetalMetal #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #RhapsodyOfFire #ScarletRecords #Skeletoon #SymphonicMetal #The7thGuild #TheThreeTenors #Triumviro #TwilightForce #VisionDivine

Dragonknight – Legions Review

By Eldritch Elitist

A not-insignificant number of my favorite power metal acts are “noun noun” bands. Power Quest. Twilight Force. Fellow Ship. There’s something about smashing two overwrought people, places, and/or things together that perfectly fits power metal’s prerequisite for excess, and Dragonknight is one of my favorite band names to come out of the genre in recent memory. I’m a little less enthused that their identities are hidden behind their confusingly uniform, copy-paste Slipknot masks1, but between their ludicrously opulent logo and Legions’ hilariously literal cover art, Dragonknight is one of the more immediately striking power metal acts to debut on Scarlet Records. Of course, with Frozen Crown and Fellowship being alums from the same label, the bar is set in the stratosphere; as Legions shows, that bar is not easily reached.

Explaining what DragonKnight sounds like would be markedly less expeditious than describing who they sound like, as Legions sees the band feasting upon a veritable buffet of inspirations. A bespoke influence seemingly accompanies each track; Gloryhammer (“Dead Kings in the Grave”), Beast in Black (“Sword of the Northern Lights”), and mercifully not Alestorm but rather Running Wild (“Pirates, Bloody Pirates!”) serve as some of Legions’ more obvious sources of inspiration. While DragonKnight’s aesthetic varies widely across this album, it’s all tied together with an overarching symphonic flair that keeps the proceedings from sounding overly disjointed. Moreover, Legions sounds technically competent and professional, traits which should be a given but are too often scarce in the genre. For many power metal fans, the level of execution alone may be satisfying.

Dragonknight may presently be more concerned with emulating the successes of modern power metal than innovating the game. Still, I also get the sense that the band had a ton of fun making Legions, so it manages not to tip my cynicism meter to the red. I do, however, find myself increasingly annoyed with this album for a potentially more damning reason: It’s just kinda bland. There are certainly highlights between “The Imperator”‘s Dream Evil-goes-symphonic march and “The Revelation2“‘s condensed galloping rush, but much of Legions lacks urgency and excitement. Instrumental flair is absent outside of the frequently excellent guitar solos, and while the melodies are generally pleasant, Dragonknight fails to capitalize on their solid foundation with the giant melodic swings that define the genre. Legions isn’t forgettable, per se, but it fails to make an impression where it matters most.

Legions hits me with all the force of a lukewarm bucket of water at least in part due to its production choices. The album sounds quite nice from a technical perspective, carrying a meatier low-end presence than most power metal records allow which effectively balances the symphonic bombast. The instruments themselves, however, lack tonal character, their generic metallic edge failing to cut through the swaths of synths. Singer and sole named member Lord Salo Khan (Mikael Salo, Everfrost3) also lacks power in many scenarios, with his voice failing to deliver a convincing presence of power in Legions’ most melodic tracks, namely “Storm Bringer.” At other times, however, he excels; the conviction with which he delivers the lyric “Sailing ships with great dexterity!” goes a long way in making “Pirates Bloody Pirates!” another early highlight of Dragonknight’s career.

I reference Dragonknight in context with a hypothetical future as it’s one that I hope comes to fruition. Their debut left me with a stronger first impression than this review and its score implies, but I ultimately found Legions lacking in staying power, my mind struggling not to wander towards the dozens of better records it reminds me of as I ventured past my first couple of spins. Dragonknight has the talent and songwriting chops to excel on future outings, but they need to work on identifying and honing their strengths rather than spreading themselves thin with an overly ambitious scope. If Dragonknight can succeed in this regard, they may well find themselves on equal footing with their peers. As it stands today, they are a decent imitation of their influences, but sincere flattery can only carry them so far.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: scarletrecords.bandcamp.com/album/legions | dragonknightband.com | facebook.com/dragonknightband
Releases Worldwide: January 17th, 2025

#25 #2025 #Alestorm #BeastInBlack #Dragonknight #DreamEvil #Everfrost #Fellowship #FinnishMetal #FrozenCrown #Galneryus #Gloryhammer #Jan25 #Legions #PowerMetal #PowerQuest #Review #Reviews #RunningWild #ScarletRecords #Slipknot #TwilightForce

Thy Kingdom Will Burn – The Loss and Redemption Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier

Scarlet Records have been around for some time, quietly snatching up every power, symphonic, and corset-core outfit in Italy. Why are there so many of these acts in a country of its size, you ask? I-a have-a no idea-a. So, it was a great surprise when I picked up this rando from their label, neither Italian nor any of the aforementioned genre abominations. Thy Kingdom Will Burn hails from the frozen wastelands of Finland and plays sad-boi melodic death metal. Like neighboring melodeath elite, Thy Kingdom Will Burn sports the genre standards of bands like Insomnium and Dark Tranquillity while tapping the vein of old-school At the Gates. Don’t expect any new directions or genre-shaping songwriting decisions, but they’re solid at what they do. Having only released LPs since 2021, it’s surprising (and maybe a little scary?) that The Loss and Redemption is the band’s third album. Regardless, this little prolific band is here to shed tears, shred balls, and possibly recruit a new fan.

One thing that can be said about Thy Kingdom Will Burn is that they are an acquired taste. Not in a negative way because there are plenty of bands like that. But, many of the transitions between gruffs and cleans can be jarring at times, though the diversity is pleasing with the different flavors of cleans. If you dislike the forced gruffs of Trivium’s Matt Heafy, you’ll have some difficulty here. They aren’t identical but it’s pretty damn close. That said, they’re good at writing passionate, melodic pieces. The band continues to find their voice and The Loss and Redemption is their best record yet. So, get the tissues ready, stretch that neck out, and prepare for things you’ve heard before that still might have you wrinkling your brow.

“Perpetual Void” is a strong song from the band and a great way to kick off the album. It incorporates many of the individual techniques you’ll hear throughout the album but into a single song. Opening with a melodic introduction, it settles into a groove before those previously mentioned snarls hit the ears. As the track rises and falls, building the atmosphere, we find a gentle, bass-led passage that precedes the erupting, memorable chorus. In six minutes, you’ll traverse passionate sections, happy-go-lucky interludes, and a stargazing chorus that grows stronger as it goes. “Sydänyö” bookends the album by taking elements from the opener and emptying the pantry. While the song swirls in and out of melodic passages, using clean guitars to set the mood, it also includes one of the band’s heaviest riffs. Toss in some folkiness, orchestration, and piano to offset the concrete-cracking drive of the song, and your heart will ache as much as your head will bang.

By the time you get to the closer, you’re used to the folky elements of The Loss and Redemption. But, I was not prepared for the extent of it in “Obscure Existence.” It’s great, and I love it. But coming off “Perpetual Void,” I did not expect the folkery and upbeat gallop that eventually transitions into some Dark Tranquillity territories. This song is also the first introduction to the album’s piano usage, which is quite pleasing to the ears. These surprises kept me inspired enough to spin the album again. However, some surprises do not work. Case in point, “Forever in Dark.” This gorgeous song didn’t deserve the spoken-word segments that derail the beautiful flow and heart-wrenching chorus. That said, the build and final iteration of the chorus is worth it—even if I cringe with each spoken-word interlude that corrupts its beauty.

There are plenty of other highlight moments in The Loss and Redemption, but not everything works in the confined structure of a song. “Martyrs of Killing Floor”1 has a lot of promise, but with all its mood shifts and bizarre lyrics, I’m left waiting for it to end. “Suffering Sky” has its moments but drags on too long and the chorus is boring. Dropping this track would have helped the flow and omitted almost six minutes of the album’s nearly fifty-minute runtime. All in all, The Loss and Redemption sees Thy Kingdom Will Burn continuing to grow as a band. The songwriting is their strongest, but most sinks only hold so many dishes.2 If the band can reel in some of the chaotic qualities of their song structures, Thy Kingdom Will Burn could be a strong contributor to the melodeath world. While Scarlet Records needs to send me some 320 kbps promos, the dynamics of this record are lush, letting you hear nearly every instrument and the individual orchestral elements. If you like melodeath, you might find something worthwhile in The Loss and Redemption.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 256 kb/s mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: thykingdomwillburn.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/thykingdomwillburn
Releases Worldwide: January 17th, 2025

#2025 #30 #AtTheGates #DarkTranquillity #FinnishMetal #Insomnium #Jan25 #MelodicDeathMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #TheLossAndRedemption #ThyKingdomWillBurn

Interview with Fellowship’s Matthew Corry and Callum Tuffen

By Eldritch Elitist

Anyone who knows me will know that I attended 2024’s Mad With Power festival in Madison, Wisconsin for one reason: Fellowship. While the opportunity to engage in lowercase fellowship with various friends and colleagues was enticing, I also couldn’t pass up the opportunity to experience the Fellowship: England’s rapidly up-and-coming power metal band, and an act that has been very special for me since their earliest days, performing their first-ever show in North America. Likewise, I wasn’t about to miss my chance to sit down with Matthew Corry (vocals and lyrics) and Callum Tuffen (drums and songwriting) and pick their brains about what makes Fellowship tick. On the day prior to this interview, I was fortunate enough to witness the band debut three new songs alongside the cover art and tracklist for their upcoming sophomore record, The Skies Above Eternity, which gave us much more to talk about than I had anticipated.

I was escorted backstage to meet Matt and Cal (by none other than Ty Christian, vocalist of Lords of the Trident and founder of Mad With Power), and was genuinely surprised to find that Matt, the little hobbit man who lives in my phone and sings directly to my soul through my earbuds, is basically as tall as I am – and I’m 6’3”. He and Callum greeted me as warmly as one might expect from a band famous for songs of camaraderie and self worth. When I told Matt that he and I had spoken on occasion through Twitter DMs, he responded with a delightfully genuine “Oh, right! Eldritch Elitist!” in what might be the highlight of my tenure at this blog. We then shuffled into a small, hot interview room; what follows are Matt and Cal’s own words, lightly edited for the sake of clarity and flow. I began by asking Matt and Callum how they came to headline an overseas festival with nothing but a debut LP under their belt.

Callum: “I spoke with Ty a bit about this. They like to bring in the bands that haven’t really “made it,” so I think that’s part of it. We’ve known Ty for quite a while, and he’s probably one of the most supportive guys in power metal today.”

Matt: “From what I’ve heard, a couple of years ago, shortly after our Fellowship EP first came out, people were already trying to get Fellowship over here. They saw Ty as “the method” for getting Fellowship over here within a couple of years, as opposed to having to wait five or six years for us to get big enough to be viable. They just kept poking Ty, and Ty, being the wonderful human that he is, said ‘you know what? Let’s try it.’ He emailed us and asked ‘are you guys up for it?’ And hell yeah, we were up for it!”

Callum: “I always had this fear that it wouldn’t actually happen, but here we are.”

Ty himself had actually covered Fellowship’s “Glint” on Lords of the Trident’s YouTube channel, long before they had signed to Scarlet Records or recorded their first LP. Matt has a small cameo in that video, so I’m curious whether that video happened before talks began for Fellowship to join the Mad With Power roster.

Matt: “Yeah, that was way before. After ‘Glint’ came out, Ty messaged us, initially saying how much he loved the song, and if we would mind if he did a cover of it. I sent him some files and he did the cover, which blew us away. I think that was the first…”

Callum: “It’s just crazy good, isn’t it?”

Matt: “Yeah, so good, and it was the first sort of ‘proper’ vocal cover of any of our stuff – which is difficult stuff. So there were immediately ‘buds for life’ kind of vibes. And then he started talking about the New Wave of Nice Metal Buds, which is so our vibe: positivity, support, all that jazz. And after that, I did a little opera video with him, for fun, and I got to show my cat to the internet. Around a year later, he emailed us saying ‘it’s time.’”

The New Wave of Nice Metal Buds that Matt refers to is Ty’s code of conduct, by which the festival is operated. It was created to promote kindness, inclusivity, and mindfulness within the Mad With Power community, and applies to the bands and fans therein. While it’s difficult to say whether this code of conduct is responsible for the festival’s atmosphere, it should be noted that the Mad With Power experience is indeed one of utmost positivity. In other words: The vibes are on point.

Since Fellowship’s inception, I’ve found it remarkable how well they balance their atmosphere of utmost sincerity against the cheese and excess of power metal, especially when similar bands – most notably Twilight Force – conduct themselves as if they are “in” on a shared joke with their audience. Cal and Matt had clearly considered this contradiction, as it stems from their unique songwriter-lyricist partnership.

Callum: “So… When I say Twilight Force is a huge inspiration for me, they’re not the only ones. In power metal, yeah, of course, they’re an inspiration for me. But I take a lot of inspiration from other bands. I don’t know if you’d pick up on the influence from our songs, but there are elements from bands like early Avenged Sevenfold, and a lot of older pop stuff, like Elton John and ABBA. I try to get across that it’s never meant to be ‘jokey,’ but at the same time, I wanted to make people feel happy, the way that kind of music makes me feel. All I can do is put out the best stuff I possibly can, that makes me feel good, and hopefully, it comes across that way to everyone else.”

Matt: “I think lyrically, this is one of those unique musical combos that I don’t think either me or Cal really expected, or would have sought out naturally. Cal’s music is not the type of thing that I would ever write, and I don’t think my lyrics are really the type of thing that Cal would immediately go for. But once we ended up putting them together, it became this symbiotic marriage. We never thought it would go crazy the way that it has, we never dreamed of coming to the States or anything when we first collaborated. I think the first thing we ever did together was record ‘Glint.’ That was almost like my trial for the band, in a way. And after the day of doing it, we just sort of sat around a pub. None of us had a drink, we just sat around a pub.”

Callum: “I think that was in London.”

Matt: “Yeah, that was in London! And we were just like… ‘Yeah, we made something really cool, didn’t we?’ When I first came into power metal – because I wasn’t into power metal, I am now, but I wasn’t at all when I joined the band – the music that everyone was making, and that Cal had sent me, was just so fundamentally uplifting. I didn’t want to take anything away from that. Cal has such a unique ability to convey really complicated emotions. There are a lot of really happy bits, and really sort of tense bits in Cal’s music, but because it flows so freely between them, it feels like just giving it one emotion would cheapen it somehow. So that desire to take it seriously, I think, is where we really align.”

I am intrigued by Matt’s mention that the recording of “Glint” was his first act as a member of Fellowship, and wonder aloud whether that recording was the version that made it onto their EP, and eventually their debut LP.

Matt: “Yep.”

Callum: “Mmm…”

Matt: “No?”

There is a bit of back and forth between Matt and Cal at this point about whether the adjustments made after the initial recording constitute a “different version” of the song, but their ultimate consensus is that what we hear on the record is what was recorded on day one. What’s even more interesting is that the rest of the band had never met Matt before that day. The official recording we have of “Glint,” as I see it, is the true beginning of Fellowship as we know them today.

Looking from the past to the future, I steer the subject to the newly announced album, The Skies Above Eternity. Specifically, I was curious about the press release’s mention of direct inspirations from the Japanese power metal scene, and how those ideas were incorporated while staying true to the Fellowship sound.

Callum: “So obviously, being such a huge power metal fan, I stumbled deeply into the Japanese realm, and I grew to love a lot of what they do harmonically. In my opinion, they do things quite differently from European and American power metal. They do a lot more intricate things, and they also delve further into neoclassical elements. I wanted to take a lot of influence from that and try to apply it to our sound without it being forced, if you know what I mean. And it wasn’t only power metal. I was listening to Japanese pop, and weirdly enough, they also do the same sort of harmonic things that are done in Japanese power metal; bands like YOASOBI, and other J-Pop artists. I tried to apply that harmonic style to our sound. We do it especially in ‘Hold Up Your Hearts (Again),’ and in ‘The Bitter Winds.’ That’s a real Galneryus-style song.”

At this point, I can’t help but remark that Galneryus is my favorite band, and – having heard “The Bitter Winds” live the day prior – that there are moments that remind me of Galneryus tracks like “Angel of Salvation.”

Matt: “Every time we’re in the car together, Cal tries to get me more and more into Galneryus. And every time we leave the car, I do add a Galneryus song to my Spotify playlist. I haven’t gone hardcore yet, but at the rate we’re going, I’ll get there. ‘Angel of Salvation’ was the first one Cal showed me where he was like ‘THIS.’

Matt makes an enthusiastic hand gesture to express Cal’s intensity towards Galneryus, implying a level of excitement with which I am all too familiar.

Branching off from our discussion of Japanese music, I ask Matt and Cal if there are any ideas on the upcoming album that feel risky, or that fans might not be expecting.

Callum: “Yes.”

Matt: “Yeah, definitely. I think after album one, we really wanted to make sure that… personally, I really don’t want Fellowship to be one of those bands that finds success with a sound and then never moves on. But I really want to make sure that we always have that fundamental joy that pervades the sort of “core” of what we do in everything. And I want – just personally, lyrically – I would love for each album to have just a slightly different ‘flavor’ of how we convey that joy, like ‘what’s an element of that joy we’re really tackling?’ The first album was very much about self-affirmation and self-discovery, finding oneself. This album is a lot darker. We have a song called ‘Victim,’ which, I think a year ago, no one would ever have predicted as a song title coming out of our band.”

EE: “It stood out to me when I was looking at the tracklist.”

Matt: “Yeah. This is ‘Light through the darkness,’ essentially. If I were to say there’s an overarching theme to this album, it would be that you can find joy in every situation, no matter how bleak it is. And finding that joy is worthwhile in and of itself, no matter how hard it seems, or how hard it is. Life is worth living, shortly. And ‘Victim’ is one of the songs where it most paints a picture that is very bleak, but finds a sort of ray of light in the middle of it.

After Matt remarks on finding different “flavors” (or “flavours,” as he puts it) of joy, I ask about the contrast of the bright, orange cover from The Saberlight Chronicles, and whether the darker, purple cover of The Skies Above Eternity was an intentional choice to help fit its more dour lyrical tone.

Callum: “There are a couple of things I wanted on this cover. I wanted… I wanted a…”

Cal pauses in search of the right words.

Matt: “Can you tell these were long conversations?”

Callum: “I wanted a cool looking castle, in the background -”

Matt: “He’s obsessed with the castle!”

Callum: “In the background! I also wanted purple – it suits the sound. I don’t really know why, I just feel like it suits the sound.”

Matt: “He’s not actually synesthetic, but Cal has so much color association. He’ll make a song and I’ll have a first pass, lyrically. Often, we end up in a conversation – I think it happened two or three times on this album – where something was close to the vibe, but it didn’t quite match what was in Cal’s head. And pretty much every time, he says “this song is blue,” or “this song is purple,” and that actually really helps me in terms of finding that vibe. The album art was very much a reflection of that. We actually had two passes of the album art this time, so if you buy the vinyl, you’ll see an early attempt at sort of finding the right vibe on the inner sleeve.”

Callum: “I just absolutely love this album art. To me, everything matches.”

Matt: “Yeah, absolutely. I think it’s amazing, Péter Sallai’s work.”

Callum: “Going back to the question, though, you obviously had ideas for the album art as well.”

Matt: “Yeah. There is a story behind every Fellowship album, and I’m hoping that I will find the time that there always will be. I obviously want the songs to stand on their own. But if we can have little bits of the lyrics which find their way into the creation of the front cover, and we combine that with the vibe that Cal can create with the music – which is very purple on this album! – we get that. You’ve got this really cool magic star thing being shattered by a warrior. It’s very evocative of a ‘battling against something difficult in a wasteland’ kind of emotion. We’re really excited, it’s really cool.”

I agree with Matt and Cal that the art is fantastic – to the point where I had bought a shirt featuring the album’s artwork the day before, without having heard a single note of it. As Matt touched on the story for the new album’s concept, I ask if there would be any extra media materials accompanying the record, such as the novella Matt wrote to accompany The Saberlight Chronicles.

Matt: ”There will be a novella for every album that we do. I am committed to saying that. I really mostly say that just to make me do it. But yeah, there is a novella coming for this album. It’s going to be very, very different from the first one. The band hasn’t read it yet, because it’s not finished yet, but… it will be! As soon as I can, I’m finishing it. It’s pretty much done.

“Everything in Fellowship… firstly, it is worth saying that all of the story stuff is very consciously in the background. The origin of the novella is as a writing tool, to keep album one lyrically fresh, and it just sprawled into a novella. I love that idea, so now we’re doing it every time. Everything exists in the same universe, where the characters of Fellowship are represented in the prologue and epilogue of every book as storytellers. Each album is then a story that we tell, which will have unique characters, and will have unique ideas. And the bookends are the tale of the Fellowship itself, which is a set of immortal storytellers, cursed to tell every story from history, that they experience whenever they are asked.”

I had planned at this point to ask Brad Wosko, the band’s lead guitarist, about the challenges that come with adapting the guitar parts of former lead guitarist Sam Browne (who is still a studio member, but no longer performs live) to his own playstyle. It says a lot about how in sync the members of Fellowship are that Matt is able to provide a detailed answer on Brad’s behalf.

Matt: “Firstly, huge props to Brad, he’s worked so hard over the last couple of years.”

EE: “I could tell.”

I’m referring here to Brad’s performance at Mad With Power, where he played most of the solos with incredible accuracy, in relation to how Sam Browne recorded them on The Saberlight Chronicles.

Matt: ”Nowadays, Brad is our lead guitarist, for sure. In the studio, Sam plays the lead on his songs, and Brad plays the lead on all of Cal’s songs. That’s the division. A lot of the shapes that Sam chose to play for album one, because they suit his fingers, don’t suit the way Brad plays, so he’s had to move things around a lot. And some things are really awkward for him, whereas they were okay for Sam. And some things that were awkward for Sam are really fine for Brad. One of the things he’s talked about specifically was the solo for “Saint Beyond the River,” which was the song that I wrote. I’m not a guitarist, and the solo that I got Sam to play was, note for note, what I wrote. And when Sam did it, he said “You’ve not written a possible part, this is the closest I can get.” And that’s because the shapes just weren’t what Sam is used to, it’s not how Sam plays. But weirdly enough, it is exactly how Brad plays. That was one of the solos that he took like a duck to water. So stylistically they’re very different, and Brad has had to adapt to a lot of those shapes on the guitar.”

To follow up, I ask whether Brad’s taking of the lead guitarist role had any impact on the writing of the new record, as it sounds like that might be the case.

Callum: “Actually, it hasn’t. We knew long ago that Sam wasn’t playing with us live, before we’d begun writing album two. I wrote the solos for my songs for most of album one, and that’s kind of applied to album two. I haven’t really changed anything.”

Matt: “There are little bits and ideas that Brad has contributed.”

Callum: “Yeah, he has. There’s a few little bits he’s added, but the majority, 90%, is the same sort of thing I was doing before. I just gotta write what sounds good to me.”

I had also intended to ask the band’s new bassist, Ed Munson, about the role he played in shaping The Skies Above Eternity. From my perspective, Ed’s energetic stage presence bolsters the Fellowship ethos of joy and camaraderie, so I go ahead with asking Matt and Callum about the ways in which he had impacted the band’s compositional and studio practices.

Matt: “I don’t think we can actually answer this question.”

EE: “Okay.”

Callum: “I can say something. It’s a similar thing to Brad’s solos; he’d get the songs, and he has added his own parts. There are things that I, not being a bass player, would not know. So he would add slides and these little intricacies across the songs, which I wouldn’t even think to do.”

Matt: “They give the songs life, y’know. More life.”

Callum: “Yeah, for sure. I think he has, especially with the songs I’ve written, one hundred percent improved them with small, little bits. Any small improvement is a good thing.”

Matt: “There’s also just the fact that Ed is a joyous human to be around. He’s such a friendly guy. Most of the time, it’s just sort of me and Cal in the studio, we do a lot of that stuff together, as a symbiotic pair. But he’s just so happy and fun that it makes being in a band easy a lot of the time. I think that does probably have some effect on the music. Where I can’t tell you.”

At this point, I ask Matt and Cal if they can speak for a moment on their experience working with the late Phillipe Giordana of the French power metal band Fairyland, a band I’ve been listening to for as long as I’ve been a fan of the genre. Giordana passed away in 2022, after having contributed keyboards to “The Frozen Land,” the Japanese bonus track from The Saberlight Chronicles.

Callum: “He… yeah, he was such a friendly guy. We were a new band in the scene, and he stumbled upon us from ‘Glint’, from our EP. And he would just be messaging us all the time, even at 2 AM, just to have a conversation about anything.”

Matt: “He was the first person who was in power metal proper to really believe in us, other than Lynd1, who you sort of knew beforehand.”

Callum: “Yeah.”

Matt: “And that enthusiasm is so infectious. And he was so kind and lovely, and one of the first things he ever said to us was ‘If you ever need a keyboard player, I would be beyond honored to do something.’ We’d written the entire album at this point, and then we realized we needed a Japanese bonus track. We didn’t know this beforehand. We wrote the Japanese bonus track, and we said ‘we gotta have Phil on it.’

Callum: “He just wanted to collaborate so badly, and we said “this is the perfect song,” with the dueling solos between him and Sam.

Matt: “We gave him the song, and he got so excited. I get really emotional talking about that, because… Yeah, he was just, I’ve never seen… We didn’t speak to him in person or anything, but he was so excited, like a child in a candy shop kind of excitement. And he blew it out of the park, and he kept talking about it afterwards, the year on.”

Matt and Cal’s memories of Phil are genuinely touching, but I steer our chat back to lighter topics, as the last thing I want is to cast a rain cloud over the day of two musicians who I massively respect. I ask them whether there are any guest collaborators on the new record.

Matt: “No, I don’t think so.”

Callum: “No, there actually isn’t.”

EE: “Okay.”

Callum: “It wasn’t a thing where we said ‘we don’t want any guests.’ I guess we…”

Matt: “I think this album kind of – stop me if I’m going off-patch – but for me I felt like this album needed to be a statement from us, in a way, where album one did really well and came out of nowhere. I think we very much wanted to prove something with album two.”

EE: “That it’s not a fluke?”

Matt: “It’s not a fluke, absolutely. And I think that just made us dive into ourselves, as it were.”

Callum: “You mean, don’t rely on someone else to prop ourselves up.”

Matt: “Yeah, exactly.”

On that note, I ask Matt and Cal whether they had a wishlist of musicians they would like to collaborate with, encouraging them to dream big.

Callum: “I would love for Lynd to do a solo on a song, from… well, ex-Twilight Force. Syu from Galneryus would be awesome. We were in contact with Herman Li2 for a little bit, a few years back. We haven’t heard from him in a while, but that would be awesome.”

EE: “He left a comment on your original music video, I remember that.”

Matt: “Yeah! He watched it on stream, we were honored. It was so cool.”

Callum: “I’ve said three, Matt.”

Matt: “Yeah, I think from my perspective, there’s a load of vocalists who I would love to work with, who would add something – maybe like a character or something on a future album, who I think would just mesh really well with my voice. I would probably go a little bit outside of power metal to find some of those voices. So, I’m not sure it’s ever happening, but someone like Maisie Peters, who’s a… real shot in the dark, off the wall. I just really like her voice. Moron Police are my favorite band of all time, so I’d love to work with their vocalist, who’s also an incredible guitar player, by the way. And then within power metal, I’m super good friends with Sozos Michael, so I think that’s the one. If anything’s going to happen, it would be with him. I’m doing stuff with him on Eons Enthroned, and I would just love to have him on a record sometime.”

EE: “Gotcha. Is there…”

Matt: “And Cal has no idea who the first two people are.”

Callum: “No, not a clue!”

Continuing the topic of dream collaborations, I ask Matt and Cal whether there are any artists who they would love to tour with someday.

Matt: “It’s really typical to say DragonForce… It’s not because they’re huge, but because we’ve spoken to Herman. He seems super chill, and he’s been really supportive of us, and it would just be nice to actually support him – like, literally support him in return, and do what we can. That would be really cool.”

Callum: “A band that’s recently started touring the world – which is awesome, I love it, because it doesn’t usually happen with Japanese bands – Lovebites. That would be awesome to do, because I’m quite a big fan of them. They’re a bit more on the thrash-y side with some of their stuff, but you don’t really see Japanese bands coming out to tour the world. But they’re doing well, and that would be great.”

Matt: “That would be such a fun concert, I think.”

To get a bit more granular with a subject they had briefly touched on already, I ask Matt and Cal how they balanced challenging themselves creatively with The Skies Above Eternity, while still delivering more of what people love about Fellowship’s first album.

Callum: “I always challenge myself by, for example, when I was talking about the Japanese style of music – not necessarily even power metal, as I said, with bands like YOASOBI – trying to incorporate that sort of sound into power metal, where it hasn’t necessarily been done. Some Japanese power metal bands, like Galneryus, obviously, already do that. But outside of Japan, you don’t really hear that sort of thing. Once again, with ‘Hold Up Your Hearts (Again),’ there’s a lot of harmonic aspects in that which were a bit experimental, but I think it’s worked out.”

Matt: “The pre-chorus harmonies that you wrote, they’re really cool and different.”

Callum: “I mean, the whole thing, there’s a lot of experimental stuff in there.”

Matt: “I just have a really long list of cool words I want to use on my phone.”

The three of us burst into laughter at this – Matt being the first to laugh, in self-deprecating fashion.

Matt: “I think I’ve said this a bunch of times in different interviews, but for me, the thing that is most important when I approach a song, is marrying the narrative and lyrical content to the music. It’s very much about how the music is the core of everything, and everything I do is a reaction to that, so that it meshes, it flows, it works together. And this means that the first thing I do, before I’ve started any words for a song, is think about how that song thematically evolves, just purely musically. And I think that sort of keeps things fresh. Because as long as the music is evolving, then I will evolve with that music. And I think Cal, in that sense, pushes me a lot…”

Callum: “Yeah.”

Matt: “… to come up with new things and interesting ideas.”

Callum: “I’m always coming across new artists that I like, and as I said, it’s just trying to take some ideas from what they might use, which you don’t typically hear in power metal, and trying to fit it into power metal.”

EE: “Yeah, inspiration can come from anywhere. I mean, what is power metal if not just metal with more pop in it?”

Matt and Callum: “Yeah!”

EE: “I almost didn’t ask this question… but I’m going to, just for fun.”

Callum: “Go.”

During the previous night’s show, while Fellowship were three songs deep into their set, Matt made an unfortunate flub when he addressed the crowd as “Michigan,” rather than “Madison.” He immediately caught and corrected his error, and proffered an apology to the audience after the song had ended, claiming that he had failed out of geography in school. I decided to offer Matt an opportunity to redeem himself while having a little fun in the process.

EE: “Matt, did you really fail out of geography?”

Matt: “Uh, I… I didn’t actually get an F, but I got such low grades consistently that my teacher disliked me, to the point where she actually said in a class that she would not accept me taking geography at a GCSE3 level. That is not something that teachers are supposed to or allowed to do! I really annoyed my geography teacher, because I just… it was not my bag. Was not my bag. So no, I did, genuinely. I grew up thinking that Dover was North of where I live, and Dover is literally the lowest part of England, so…”

Callum: “Is this why you’ve learned so much about American states now? We were coming here, so you just learned…”

Matt: “Yeah, yeah, it is. I don’t know which one I’m in, but I know enough about them.”

Callum: “Okay, Mister Michigan.”

Matt lets out an exaggerated wail of social anguish at Cal’s jab.

EE: “I was talking with Angry Metal Guy after your set – who I think you met yesterday – and he said ‘I feel so bad for Matt, because Matt’s probably going to be thinking about that once a week forever.’”

Matt: “Yeah, yeah. There is literally a Simpsons joke about somebody doing that, and… grr. I can’t get over that one.”

EE: “From the perspective of an audience member, and all the people who were around me, everyone just thought it was super funny and a very honest mistake, and no one thought anything of it.”

Matt: “I’m really, I’m really… really glad. If I made that mistake in England, I would probably be booed off stage.”

With a band-aid slapped on Matt’s wounded pride, I proceed to wrap up our chat in an unpredictable, innovative fashion: By asking about Fellowship’s plans for the foreseeable future.

Matt: “So, we have a couple shows booked later this year. We’re doing another sort of mini-tour in the U.K., and we’re headlining this time, which should be super fun. We’re playing Edinborough… and two other places which I could look up, but are not in my brain right now. I want to say Manchester and London.”

Callum: “Yeah, that’s correct.”

Matt: “Yeah, it is Manchester and London.”

Callum: “We’ve got two German festivals.”

Matt: “Just after Christmas?”

Callum: “Yeah.”

Matt: “And then we’re playing Epic Fest next year, which we have been re-booked for. Which is such a cool thing for us, because we played there this year, and we were on such a small stage that a lot of people were disappointed they couldn’t see us. So they’ve booked us again for next year on a bigger one! Which is really, really cool, and just validating for us, I think.”

Callum: “We also have… I’ve started, I’ve got ideas already for album three.”

Matt: “Oh, don’t promise that so soon, Cal!”

Callum: “There’s ideas in the bank, there’s some ideas already. They’re not finished, but the base stuff is there.”

Matt: “We’re gonna start getting the “When’s album three” cries before we’ve even dropped album two!”

With that, I thanked Matt and Callum for their time before being given the friendliest handshakes I’ve ever received. If you’d like to hear an utterly wholesome and genuine power metal record that combines elements of Galneryus, YOASOBI, and ABBA, you can catch The Skies Above Eternity, releasing on Scarlet Records on Friday, November 22nd. Fellowship’s third album will follow shortly thereafter. Cal promised.

Show 3 footnotes

1. Philip Lindh, ex-Twilight Force. ↩
2. Co-founder and guitarist of DragonForce. ↩
3. General Certificate of Secondary Education ↩

#2024 #ABBA #AvengedSevenfold #BlogPost #DragonForce #EltonJohn #EonsEnthroned #Fairyland #Fellowship #interview #LordsOfTheTrident #Lovebites #MaisiePeters #MoronPolice #ScarletRecords #TwilightForce #YOASOBI

Veonity – The Final Element Review

By Steel Druhm

Written by: Nameless_N00b_90

Do you believe power metal has become “too soft and synth-based?”1 Then Veonity has the solution for you—their sixth full-length album, The Final Element. These Swedes have been offering up their brand of late ‘90s power metal since 2013.2 And in 2020 Twelve covered their fourth album, Sorrows, noting that it was “a solid and enjoyable slab of power metal.” Veonity has undergone some crucial changes since they last graced these hallowed halls, notably the addition of vocalist Isak Stenvall (Lancer), which allows former vocalist Anders Sköld to focus solely on guitar. With the extra firepower that Stenvall provides, Veonity hopes to get you pumped up for their epic saga of power metal anthems.

The Final Element tells an epic fantasy tale, and the focus on narrative drives the album’s tone. Much of the story has the protagonist overcoming an obstacle or finding success, and the rousing music mirrors these themes. There’s a joyful mood reminiscent of what Fellowship plays on The Saberlight Chronicles. Some of these good feelings come from guitar riffs playing high, uplifting notes (“Carry On”, “Heart of a Warrior”). Stenvall is the main driver of these good feelings, though. He sings with such gusto on “Chains of Tyranny” that you can’t help but feel your spirit soar with the cry “Together we’ll break the chains of tyranny.”3 While Veonity isn’t billed as a Christian act, Christian imagery dominates much of The Final Element, which explains why Stenvall sounds so blissful relaying “My sacrifice will fulfill my destiny” and later invoking a Christ-like figure who will “Forgive all… sins” (“The Fifth Element”). He sounds downright angelic as the album reaches its conclusion, and he’s eventually backed by a choir that evokes the pearly gates of heaven.

The introduction of Stenvall as lead vocalist brings a significant change to Veonity’s sound. While Stenvall lacks Sköld’s vocal diversity, he’s a much better singer. His higher register is reminiscent of Fellowship’s Matthew Corry,4 and it brings a bouncy lightness to The Final Element. It’s not just the singing that’s improved, but Sköld and Samuel Lundström’s guitar work feels more energetic. They often let loose with furious shredding à la Dragonforce, setting a stirring tone early on and keeping a rollicking melody to accent Stenvall’s singing. Joel Kollberg’s double-kick drumming has some serious punch, turning your head into a speed bag when the pace grows frenetic. The bass (Kristoffer Lidre) sadly gets lost in the mix, but it sometimes rears its groovy head, like early in “Warrior’s Code.” Outside of the synths in the brief intro track, this is no-frills, meat ‘n’ taters power metal.

Veonity relies heavily on traditional song structures. It’s as though they’ve studied Songcraft 101 in as much depth as I’ve had to study Angry Metal Guy’s Guide to Not Sucking Anymore.5 All songs follow a classic (if formulaic) intro, verse, chorus, bridge, and finally, the chorus repeated a whole bunch. Writing within a time-tested formula isn’t necessarily bad, but it does put some constraints on the music. For one, Veonity heavily reins in their solos during the bridge, and while this helps fend off bloat, I miss the extended wankery that noted wanksters Ascension and Dragonforce employ. Cutting at least one rendition of the chorus in favor of lengthier solos would help the songs feel less repetitive. However, The Final Element has plenty of catchy choruses, and the use of a repetitive formula builds stronger anticipation when the songs hit their peaks. Writing within rigid structures also keeps the album nice and tight at 44 minutes.

At the conclusion of his review of Sorrows, Twelve wrote that “Veonity have a lot to offer the wonderful world of power metal.” Four years later, that’s even more true. Veonity has successfully revitalized its sound with fast and furious energy, vigorous guitar solos, and a fresh vocalist. The Final Element proves that you can stick to the moist bread-and-butter basics and still have a good time. Veonity may not top the masters of joyous power metal, but at least they give impatient Fellowship fans something to tide them over until The Skies above Eternity drops in late November.6

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 256 kb/s CBR MP3
Label: Scarlet Records | Bandcamp
Websites: veonity.com
Releases Worldwide: October 18, 2024

#2024 #35 #Ascension #DragonForce #Fellowship #ItalianMetal #Oct24 #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #TheFinalElement #Veonity

Fellowship – The Skies Above Eternity Review

By Eldritch Elitist

If there had never been a second Fellowship record, I would have been okay. Obviously, I wanted another Fellowship record—and, ideally, biennial releases from England’s premiere life-affirming, self-worth-preserving power metal outfit—but I’ve known since the first time I heard The Saberlight Chronicles that there would never be another Fellowship record like it. Not only would their sophomore album be unable to re-invoke the wonder I felt upon hearing a full-length Fellowship release for the first time, but it would also be nigh impossible for them to recapture the exact vibe of that record after two years of added experience.1 Not that I would want them to. Ideally, subsequent Fellowship records will evolve in a variety of directions, all while still channeling their unmistakable and unbreakable sense of joy. Enter The Skies above Eternity, where—as prophesied—the Fellowship has grown.

As it turns out, the most efficient way for Fellowship to absolve any fears that their sophomore record might fail to capitalize on the strengths of its predecessor is to open with the best power metal song of the year. The winkingly titled “Hold up Your Hearts (Again)” is the ideal power metal opener, excising all chaff and cutting straight to the most giddily melodic lead guitar riff imaginable. The flow and feel of this track are replicated in many of The Skies above Eternity’s best cuts (namely “Dawnbreaker,” “Eternity,” and “World End Slowly”). It took me a while to pinpoint where exactly I’d heard this vibe, but once I realized, it could not be denied: these tracks all invoke the hype-building structure of an excellent anime opening. It may sound silly, and perhaps even cringe if you are a joyless husk given human form. However, if you’re familiar with anime tropes, and you close your eyes during the opening of these songs, you can practically see the logo drop. This feels like a conscious choice to differentiate the feel of a Fellowship song from their contemporaries. Thanks to the band’s ever-boundless optimism, they pull it off without losing so much of a hint of their established charm.

Efficiency is the operative word when it comes to The Skies above Eternity’s pop-oriented structure; excluding the instrumental outro “Memories on the Wind,” the album barely breaches forty minutes. While I don’t think this is a better record than The Saberlight Chronicles, it is nearly as good, with The Skies Above Eternity’s main strength over its predecessor being its digestibility and replayability. Where Saberlight was something of a marathon at sixty-two minutes, Skies is compulsively replayable, and its songs are every bit as excellent (though it did take some time for the training montage-worthy “King of Nothing” to fully grow on me). My only criticism, then, is an unconventional but glaring one: it feels like it’s missing a track. The infectiously bouncy “A New Hope” is a bit of an odd closer, but one that would make much more sense if it were preceded by a darker, more bombastic track in the vein of “Avalon.” As it stands, The Skies above Eternity feels somewhat anticlimactic.

Speaking of “darker,” the announcement for The Skies above Eternity advertised a darker direction for Fellowship. This darkness manifests in a purely lyrical fashion; these songs cover notably more difficult subject matter, with “World End Slowly” in particular addressing the search for solace in the face of an imminent and untimely death. Yet Matthew Corry’s lyrics still manage to kindle hope in a wonderfully poetic fashion, preserving Fellowship’s essential, unshakeable optimism. Corry’s literal voice has evolved as well, with his intense delivery in “Eternity” being my favorite performance from him to date. The band flexes more technical muscle than ever despite multiple lineup alterations; The Skies above Eternity is a riffier experience, with more colorful texturing in both its composition and drummer Callum Tuffen’s kitwork. While former lead guitarist Sam Browne retains a studio presence, Brad Wosko has taken up the bulk of the lead work and proves himself to be every bit as proficient. It should be said as well that incoming bassist Ed Munson delivers one of my favorite bass performances of the year in the verse of “Victim.”

The Skies above Eternity is not an experience on the same level as The Saberlight Chronicles, and—at least from my perspective—it was never going to be. That being said, thanks to its condensed runtime and a stronger sense of instrumental muscle, I find it likely that a sizable chunk of Fellowship’s audience will see it as the superior album. Regardless of where one stands with their abbreviated ranking of Fellowship records, I cannot imagine any previously established fan of Fellowship being disappointed with The Skies Above Eternity. It may not have the same impact on the scene as Fellowship’s debut, but it is vital to their discography. This record doesn’t just confirm that Fellowship’s initial success was anything but a fluke; it assures me that they both understand and have preserved what made them so special in the first place.

Rating: 4.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 256 kb/s CBR MP3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: fellowshipmetal.bandcamp.com | fellowshipmetal.com | facebook.com/fellowshipUK
Releases Worldwide: November 22nd, 2024

#2024 #40 #EnglishMetal #Fellowship #Nov24 #PowerMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #TheSkiesAboveEternity

Krilloan – Return of the Heralds Review

By Steel Druhm

As I began my listening sessions with Sweden’s Krilloan and their second album Return of the Heralds, I reflected on how rarely I review power metal.1 That’s partly because we don’t get much of it in the promo sump these days apart from grizzled olde dawgs like Hammerfall and Powerwolf. It seems to be a genre in decline with fewer bands stepping forward to hoist the yellow banner of Cheese Whizardy. That’s a shame too, because as much as we mock power metal for its frilly, sugary excesses, it can be among the most embiggening metal styles when executed properly. Now comes Krilloan with badass Castlevania-esque cover art and a style blending classic Euro-power with traditional and trve/epic elements. At times you’ll hear traces of the early Euro-power stalwarts, late wavers like Lost Horizon, and even grandiose operators like Blind Guardian. Ambitions may be king-sized, but a lot can go wrong when you reach for the stars. What fate awaits the starry-eyed Krill-Monger?

With a shocking lack of over-the-top intro nonsense, Return of the Heralds leaps directly into the fray with “Atlantean Sword,” which is the most standard-issue Euro-power tracks on offer here. It smacks of the bombast of Italian cheddar warriors Domine and also bears a strong similarity to the early days of Sonata Arctica, in no small part due to Alex VanTrue’s Tony Kakko-adjacent delivery. It’s a lively song full of galloping, sword-swinging energy with a Conan the Barbarian theme, though it suffers from sounding like a million other power metal nuggets. After that, Krilloan start to play with outside influences. “Kings of The Iron Hill” dials up the traditional metal influence for a more muscular sound, and “Blood & Fire (Born on a Battlefield)” goes even further, bringing trve metal aesthetics into play for a rougher, meaner approach that suits the Conan storyline. Heavy riffs drive the attack forward as war chants punctuate the storytelling in a Manocentric way. I especially appreciate how Krilloan borrows from the immortal soundtrack of Conan the Barbarian for maximum glory riding.

As Heralds unspools, Krilloan get heavier and more aggressive and this is when they’re at their best. “Hammer of Wrath” is like Domine mixing DNA with Paragon, making for a more impactful sound and the chorus is righteous. “Avenging Sun” goes even harder, channeling trve acts like Ancient Empire and Ironflame for added machismo. The Blind Guardian worship gets real on the folksy “The Kingkillers Tale” as VanTrue pulls off a scary accurate Hansi Kürsch impression, and late album cut “We Burn” seasons Amorphis-like guitar bits throughout a wild battle anthem full of piss and vinegar. While the writing is a bit uneven, no song is bad or disposable. The performances are impressive and the band wisely keep the songs short and tight with only one reaching the 5-minute mark. This along with a tight 40-minute runtime makes Return of the Heralds an easy spin with some high points.

Talent abounds in Krilloan and I’m especially impressed by Alex VanTrue’s vocals. The man is a chameleon with a big range, channeling any number of notable power metal luminaries. He can hit the high notes but does so sparingly and has a good ear for hooky vocal lines and patterns. He sells the material well and keeps the listener involved. Steve Brockmann and Klas Holmgren are talented guitarists capable of driving a song with solid riffs and soaring when solo time is nigh. Marco Ignacio Toba’s bass is present and involved, and Christoph Brandes powers the music with booming double-base runs and thundering kit work. Krilloan possess the ability needed to rock the power genre and when their writing is at its peak, good things happen.

Return of the Heralds is a good power metal album that sometimes threatens to become more. With more consistent writing and a drift away from the generic elements of the Euro-power sound, Krilloan have real potential. I’ll be watching to see what they do next since good Euro-power is pretty scarce these days. Worth a loud spin with sword held high.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet
Websites: facebook.com/krilloanofficial | instagram.com/krilloan_official
Releases Worldwide: September 20th, 2024

#2024 #30 #BlindGuardian #Domine #HeavyMetal #Krilloan #LostHorizon #PowerMetal #ReturnOfTheHeralds #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #Sep24 #SonataArctica

Stuck in the Filter: June 2024’s Angry Misses

By Kenstrosity

Managing this Filter is a full-time job. Or it would be if I paid anyone, or got paid myself. I doubt anyone in this godforsaken facility has seen a greenback in the last two decades.1 Nonetheless, I grabbed my clipboard and my flogger and I made my way to the lockers, where my dutiful minions await my first order of each day. It’d been a minute since we cleared out the ducts in the south wing of AMG Headquarters, so that’s where I ushered my team first. The poor souls shivered at the thought of tackling a highly neglected section of the system. But, as always, work needs doing and this is the work.

At long last, just when I started considering replacing my whole crew outright and leaving the current one for dead, they returned, battered and winded, but alive. And they brought wares! O blessed day! Without further ado, I bring you our June Filter!

Kenstrosity’s Medieval Mutton

Aklash // Reincarnation [June 20th, 2024 – Self Release]

Proving the unlikely flexibility of black metal as a medium, tales of knights, castles, and fantastical clashes of class marries with charred extremity so effortlessly that it comes at no surprise to me how UK Medieval melodic black metal troupe Aklash came to be. Kicking fourth record Reincarnation off with an incredible one-two punch, “Reincarnation” and “Communion with Ghosts,” Aklash’s melodic black metal-meets-Vulture Industries-meets-Modest Mouse-meets-Æther Realm concoction charms its way deep into my very being. These songs, burgeoning with lush compositions, incredible guitar work, and multifaceted personalities, evoke imagery of the ancient and the arcane so vividly that it often feels like traveling through time in an alternate universe of magic and mirth. The rabid “Babylon” takes this initial salvo and stabs yet another 1,200cc of pure adrenaline into my veins.2 As my neck swings and spirals with great velocity, giant mugs of mead spontaneously manifest in both fists. What is a sponge to do but imbibe? Against all odds, such infectious energy sustains into the magnificent closer “My Will Made Manifest,” making this record a wall-to-wall festival of sound. If it weren’t for a couple of frilly interludes and the teensiest spot of bloat in a couple of places, I could see Reincarnation growing into a year-end contender. In the end, it might do just that.

Thus Spoke’s Forgotten Findings

Cainites // Revenant [June 21st, 2024 – Scarlet Records]

It was once rumored across Eastern Europe that those who rebelled against the Orthodox church were cursed to become vampires after they died. Revenant, however, follows an Orthodox priest, whose induction into the class of bloodthirsty monsters happens irrespective of his religious devotion. Crafting a spooky tale with Scandinavian-inspired melodeath and flourishes of synthy blackened death, Italian duo Cainites strike a little like a less-polished Tribulation, but with bags of their personality. These guys know how to write a riff that shivers its way up your spine (“Theotokos,” “God’s Wrath,” “Redemption”) and dance around in your belly (“Darkness Awaits,” “Forgive Our Sins”), and damn, can it be catchy. Using a dueting mixture of growls and moaning cleans, choruses jam their way into your brain and don’t budge (“Vampire God,” “We Lost Our Sanctity”), amplifying the gleefully malicious bounce of the riffs with tongue-in-cheek melodrama. Solos have just enough yearning depth while staying grounded with a gritty tone, and not outstaying their welcome. The album generally treads the line well between camp and serious, discounting, perhaps, the extended spoken-word Bible recitation where God curses Cain (“Cainites”). In all, it’s a very good time and only grew on me the more I listened. One to check out for true fans of melodeath.3

Inherits the Void // Scars of Yesteryears [June 21st, 2024 – Avantgarde Music]

Scars of Yesteryears took me so much by surprise that I had to be informed by another staff member that it even existed. Having reviewed last year’s The Impending Fall of the Stars, and finding it quite an uplifting piece of melodic black metal, I was keen to see where the project had gone, musically, in the intervening time. The answer is nowhere, but that’s not entirely negative. This is still soaring (“L’effigie Du Déclin”), epic (“Scars of Yesteryear,” “L’eternelle Course Des Astres”), blistering (“Celestial Antler”), and sometimes beautiful (“The Endless Glow of Twilight”) meloblack. With lightning-fast and stormily dynamic riffing and enough of a melodic through-line to keep things going. The highs are not as high as they were on the previous record, the slower moments lacking the atmosphere and grandiosity that former work showed (though coming closest on “L’eternelle…” and “The Endless…”). However, the whole feels more consistent and steady, with the first half whizzing by on the tailwind of “Celestial Antler,” “The Orchard of Grief,” and “Ashes of Grievance”‘s bubbling energy, and the second dipping in intensity only to be saved by the final couple of tracks. Above-average, fiery meloblack, and worth taking for a spin even if it won’t be making any lists.

Dear Hollow’s Dumpster Disturbance

Bilmuri // American Motor Sports [June 28th, 2024 – Self Release]

Everyone loves easycore.4 In an alternative universe where easycore is a natural progression of pop country rather than pop/punk, it becomes an international treasure and that treasure is American Motor Sports. Of the crabcore alum of Attack Attack!,5 Johnny Franck is least likely to be featured on Octane Radio,6 as the Bilmuri project has been a means for musical exploration since his departure. Offering the most streamlined homage to the three M’s (‘Murica, memes, and the Midwest), get ready to crank your hog to ten songs of heartbreak, beer, and landscaping through arena pop country with needlessly heavy djent guitar riffs – alongside Franck’s signature insanity coursing through all the movements. From the deathcore-meets-honkytonk and sub drops of “Better Hell” and “Spinnin’ You Around,” the blaring and sexy sax solos of “2016 Cavaliers (Ohio),” “Straight Through You,” and “Drunk Enough,” the blazing fiddle of “Talkin’ 2 Ur Ghost,” to the Kevin James breakdown call out of “Emptyhanded,” Bilmuri creates an infectious blend of the safely predictable and the utterly apeshit. It features guest artists from country scenes (Dylan Marlowe, Mitchell Tenpenny) and indie pop spheres (Knox, Arizona) who all add yearning and theatricality to Franck’s already emotive performances. American Motor Sports is twenty-eight minutes of catchy melodies, scathing grooves, and tastefully tragic lyrics with a penchant for memes. We’re all supposed to hate it, but much to my assigned promos’ dismay and Steel Druhm‘s chagrin,7 I haven’t been able to listen to much else.

Dolphin Whisperer’s Maritime Musing

Houle // Ciel Cendre et Mis​è​re Noire [June 7th, 2024 – Les Acteurs de l’Ombre Productions]

We all know that black metal hits harder when it’s actually something else wrapped in a blackened and shrieking package. France’s Houle offers Ciel Cendre et Misère Noire as a one part Iron Maiden, one part Immortal, and two parts unstoppable siren screaming as vocalist Adsagsona shreds throat through each of the blazing numbers on this debut (minus the beer-swinging sailor intro). Her ear-stabbing cries tally high, and if it weren’t for her glottal punishments and accompanying guitarists’ breaks into tremolo melodies, tracks “Sur Les Braises de Foyer” and “Sel, Sang et Gerçures” could be instead the backdrops to something of the dark power metal world, replete with Maiden bass gallop and anthemic flair. She has a fine narrative croon too, but it’s her flagrant vocal flayings that sell the extremity of what Houle packs as ballast. With terraced guitar lines and thrashed-out drum breaks (“La Danse du Rocher,” “Mère Nocturne”), Ciel Cendre has the forward energy of battle and doesn’t let go to the very end, joining bands like Aorlhac and Passièsme in the modern melodic black metal field fit for castle raids. But as long-form closer “Née des Embruns” reinforces with calls of the ocean in its open and fade, Houle attacks from the sea. En garde!

Mark Z.’s Musings

200 Stab Wounds // Manual Manic Procedures [June 28th, 2024 – Metal Blade Records]

Following a rapid rise to fame during the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ohio death metal troupe 200 Stab Wounds thrust their Slave to the Scalpel debut onto the masses in 2021. While I was about as mixed on that one as Felagund was, their second album Manual Manic Procedures has proven these wounds cut far deeper than originally thought. The beefy chugs that the band has become known for are still here in full force, but now they’re paired with sharper hooks and a heightened sense of maturity. On Procedures, you’ll hear acoustic plucking, immense Bolt Thrower riffing, grooves that will blow your guts out, and even some melodic death metal influence—and that’s just on the first song. The band also knows when to give you a breather, be it a well-placed atmospheric instrumental (“Led to the Chamber / Liquefied”) or an extended ride on a great groovy riff (“Defiled Gestation”). With a monstrous guitar tone, plenty of killer moments, and a track flow that’s smoother than liquefied human remains, Manual Manic Procedures feels like modern death metal coming into its own.

#200StabWounds #2024 #Aklash #AmericanMetal #AmericanMotorSports #Aorlhac #Arizona #AttackAttack #AvantgardeMusic #ÆtherRealm #Beartooth #Bilmuri #BlackMetal #BlackenedDeathMetal #BoltThrower #Cainites #CielCendreEtMisèReNoire #DeathMetal #DylanMarlowe #FrenchMetal #Houle #Immortal #InheritsTheVoid #IronMaiden #ItalianMetal #Jun24 #Knox #LesActeursDeLOmbreProductions #ManualManicProcedures #MedievalBlackMetal #MelodicBlackMetal #MelodicDeathMetal #MetalBladeRecords #MitchellTenpenny #ModestMouse #OfMiceAndMen #Passièsme #Reincarnation #Revenant #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #ScarsOfYesteryears #SelfRelease #StuckInTheFilter #Tribulation #UKMetal #VultureIndustries

Verikalpa – Tuomio Review

By Angry Metal Guy

Tuomio is the fourth full-length LP from Finnish extreme folk metallers, Verikalpa. Back in ’20,1 I reviewed—and thoroughly enjoyed—Verikalpa’s sophomore platter Tuoppitannsi. The thing that stood out to me about the record, and its follow-up Tunturihauta, was how much it felt like the band was carrying forward the impeccable vibes from Finntroll’s earliest contributions, but without setting their stamp on it. Still, the writing popped and the sound satisfyingly scratched an extremely specific itch. As I wrote at the time, they bore “the accordion of tradition to the sauna of the metal gods, so that we might have something new to listen to while we drink.” But, let’s be honest, “competent but derivative” is not the praise anyone is looking for when they create music. And so one wonders, four years after my initial exposure, is that the only contribution Verikalpa had to make?

Like its predecessors, Tuomio has a familiar sound that’s easy to love. Verikalpa plays speedy, sometimes galloping or even blasty, melodeath with as much harmonic minor as the songwriters can pump into the riffs. The band, made up of two Jussis (guitars and keyboards), two Samis (guitars and bass), a Jari (drums), and a Jani (vocals) play tight, energetic metal that calls upon their Finnish brethren, but without the pretensions of a Wintersun or Turisas. Their compositions aren’t complex, they’re not borrowing sounds from Japanese instrumentation, and don’t require quantum computing to play on a computer. And their scope is not one with epic aspirations. Instead, Tuomio works almost exclusively in simple time but does so with loads of pathos, driven on by majestic and sticky melodies carried on guitar or keys reminiscent of Turisas’ debut album. This makes it easy to drop into comfortable grooves, with the snare on two and four and machine gun kicks whipping at the Jussis’ and Samis’ backs.

And firmly planted in that familiar Finnish sound, Tuomio delivers the bangers in spades. Verikalpa vacillates primarily between speedier, driven passages that will annihilate unsuspecting crowds live (“Arvon tuomari,” “Noijan sauna”), and the kind of mid-paced tracks (“Laulava vainaja,” “Hakkaa hakkaa,” or the bridge on “Sammalsynti”) that can so often get sleepy if not perfectly executed. But Tuomio finds Verikalpa increasingly mastering their craft, balancing these different speeds, with every riff hitting home—and a seemingly innate understanding of when to slow it down or speed it up to keep a listener interested. Every song on Tuomio features sharp hooks, interesting variations upon themes, and tight execution. One major difference from the previous albums is that Tuomio is mixed and mastered by Pasi Kauppinen, of Sonata Arctica. Pasi’s approach gives them exactly the kind of crisp, and balanced mix that the band needs. And while it could be criticized as dated, it clocks in at a surprising DR of 8 and it fits the music perfectly. Pasi’s touch does the job of getting out of the way of the songs to allow the composition to speak for itself.

And it’s the composition throughout Tuomio that makes it clear how Verikalpa has begun to differentiate itself. One of the band’s most defining tendencies is playing key melodies in unison. That is, the bass, keys, and guitars are all playing the same thing, which sometimes gives it a punky energy. While this could be boring, it has the counterintuitive effect of creating a melodic blunt-force trauma. As a lover of big, epic sounds, I tend to lean away from bands that work with punky energy or ‘simplistic’ writing. But Verikalpa understands that songwriting is a balancing act, making the band’s very specific and well-considered use of harmony extremely effective. After several listens, I began realizing that I was perking up at these perfect moments, like in “Tulimerten taa,” where the harmonies come in (YouTube link, plays 15ish second clip), or the pre-chorus in “Laulava vainaja” (1:13) where the guitars suddenly deviate out of unison into an abbreviated lead, which adds a tight flare. What feels unsubtle becomes the band’s best compositional trick. Less turns out to be more.2 This also gives the impression that Verikalpa has begun opening things up a bit more compositionally, experimenting with better orchestration and slightly carnivalesque sounds (“Maat hauraan hautaa,” the bridge in “Veritonttu”). It’s playful, but it’s worth taking 100% seriously.

Ultimately, Tuomio’s combination of a maturing band that’s developing its sound and a production that lets their excellent ideas and melodies shine creates what is easily one of the most enjoyable listening experiences I’ve had this year. Tuomio is an album without a bad song and that finds Verikalpa making major strides to come into its own. Even at 55 minutes long, I never think about the album’s length when I’m listening to it. It’s just fun hearing Verikalpa develop, and while their sound is still undeniably indebted to the Finnish scene from 20 years ago, Tuomio is helping them plant their flag. So, sure, Verikalpa continues to bear the accordion of tradition to the sauna of the metal gods. But in 2024, they no longer only do so as supplicants.

Rating: Very good (and getting better!)
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: V0 mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: verikalpaofficial.com | Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: April 19th, 2024

#2024 #35 #Apr24 #Blog #FinnishMetal #FolkMetal #MelodicDeathMetal #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #SonataArctica #Tunturihauta #Tuomio #Tuoppitannsi #Turisas #Verikalpa #Wintersun

Drown in Sulphur – Dark Secrets of the Soul Review

By Dear Hollow

I’m gonna be an insufferable hipster about this one: I’ve been listening to blackened deathcore before Lorna Shore made it cool. Hell, I was listening to the style before Will Ramos made Lorna Shore cool. Bands like The Breathing Process, early Make Them Suffer, and Dark Sermon were all rattling off their own takes on spooky corpse-painted Hot Topic-core in the early 2010s before some Hot Topic frequenter said “ooooh” and nabbed that Watain t-shirt they have on display while manically making pig noises to emulate “To the Hellfire.” Here we meet Drown in Sulphur, an Italian blackened deathcore act, who attempts their own spin on kvlt-y brutality.

Largely the problem with much of blackened deathcore is which blackened muse they worship – it ends up being mostly Dimmu Borgir or Cradle of Filth. As such, blackened deathcore can often be distilled into the definition “deathcore with symphonic synths” much of the time. Despite their attempt at conjuring the undead frigid atmosphere of 90’s second-wave, Drown in Sulphur largely falls into this category. Sophomore effort Dark Secrets of the Soul is all about exploration of the darkness of human nature, and while cloaked in brutality and opaqueness, there is a heart of beating melody that courses through its best. Ultimately, thanks to Dark Secrets of the Soul’s blend of melody, brutality, and atmosphere, Drown in Sulphur has promise.

The Italian collective’s bread and butter is crushing deathcore a la the classic Suicide Silence and Carnifex palette, balanced by dramatic synthwork, frenetic and multifaceted guitar work, and manic blastbeats and plods. Tracks like “Buried By Snow and Hail,” “Unholy Light,” and closer “Shadow of the Dark Throne” balance these elements beautifully, melodic motifs grounding the exploration into funereal dimensions with punishing viciousness, tasteful synths, and bouncy riffage. The corpse-painted elephant in the room is breakdowns, which Drown in Sulphur utilizes as moments of punishing clarity that feel like a reprieve from the symphonic saturation beatdown. Refusing to be pegged as a one-trick pony, the more meditative melodies of “Lotus” and “Dark Secrets of the Soul” are powerful and dynamic, guiding the movements to truly punishing pinnacles – even if the clean vocals of the former are hit or miss. Widely interspersed wailing guitar solos are largely successful, capitalizing on track growth, while vocalist Chris “Christ” Lombardo offers a filth-encrusted bellow and occasional shriek that adds to the dark atmosphere – a similar tone to Cabal’s Andreas Bjulver.

The glaring issue with Dark Secrets of the Soul is like many akin to the symphonically inclined -core abusers: monotony and saturation. Like Betraying the Martyrs or Ovid’s Withering’s weaker offerings, Drown in Sulphur regularly toes the fine line between drama and excess, leaning periodically into the latter. Tracks like “Eclipse of the Sun of Eden” and “Say My Name” are all-out bombasts of symphonic saturation and monotonous deathcore brutality that simply extend for far too long, the sense of overwhelm giving way to undeniable boredom and the sound overstaying its welcome. While intro “Adveniat Regnum Tuum” sets the tone nicely with distorted vocals and dark ambiance, interlude “Vampire Communion” serves no purpose, as follow-up “Shadow of the Dark Throne” features its own slow-burning crescendo anyway. While “Lotus” and “Shadow of the Dark Throne” offer some of the best melodies and balance of the album, questionable grungy cleans add a question mark to the former while a slam-influenced slog pumps the brakes on the latter’s momentum, a moment that is blessedly brief.

I’m unsure if Drown in Sulphur quite accurately embodies the “blackened deathcore” moniker as much as the “deathcore with synths” vibe. And that’s okay, because Dark Secrets of the Soul is a rock-solid deathcore album with a melodic thread woven into its infectious energy. While it can get too much periodically, and there are enough questionable decisions made to damage the album’s longevity, it remains a fun listen with plenty of dark atmosphere and filthy pummeling to spare. The “kvlt” is more an aesthetic than a sonic choice, but Dark Secrets of the Soul is tasteful and punishing enough to give Drown in Sulphur another spin or two.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: drowninsulphurofficial.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/wedrowninsulphur
Releases Worldwide: January 12th, 2024

#2024 #30 #BetrayingTheMartyrs #BlackenedDeathcore #CABAL #Carnifex #CradleOfFilth #DarkSecretsOfTheSoul #DarkSermon #Deathcore #DimmuBorgir #DrownInSulphur #ItalianMetal #Jan24 #LornaShore #MakeThemSuffer #OvidSWithering #Review #Reviews #ScarletRecords #SuicideSilence #TheBreathingProcess

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#BraveWords
BURDEN OF GRIEF Debut "A Daydream Of Sorrow" Music Video
German death / thrash metal band, Burden Of Grief, have released a video for "A Daydream Of Sorrow", the new single from their upcoming eighth studio album, Destination Dystopia...

https://bravewords.com/news/burden-of-grief-debut-a-daydream-of-sorrow-music-video

#BurdenofGrief #ADaydreamofSorrow #Debut #MusicVideo #NewMusic #MelodicDeathDoomMetal #FinnishMetal #ScarletRecords