The final part of a trilogy which began with the Lunar Prelude EP and continued with the Moonbathers full length, Hunter’s Moon (all Napalm Records) is the latest EP by Dutch Symphonic Metal act Delain. Comprising four new tracks and a selection of live cuts recorded on the 2017 ‘Danse Macabre’ tour in Utrecht, the live show is also included as a Blu-Ray disc.

Opening gently with the lilting tones of singer Charlotte Wessels, first of the new tracks, the powerful ‘Masters Of Destiny’, suddenly bursts into life with guitars and orchestra, slowing down for a breather halfway through before building towards a grand, cinematic finale. The title track is an uptempo and instantly catchy affair featuring a great chorus and screamed vocals from guitarist Timo Somers.

The relatively short ‘This Silence Is Mine’ opens with a chunky, chuggy riff and dancing keyboards before becoming something a little darker, punctuated by some killer guitar work. The new tracks come to an end with the bouncy but heavy ‘Art Kills’ which comes complete with another excellent chorus and more Death Metal backing vocals.

The live portion of the release features ten tracks including the likes of ‘Hands of Gold’, ‘Danse Macabre’, ‘Your Body Is A Battleground’, ‘Control The Storm’, ‘Not Enough’, and ‘The Gathering’, most of which feature guest appearances from Marco Hietala of Nightwish on vocals.

With the high standard of the new songs plus the quality of the live performance, ‘Hunter’s Moon’ will happily tide Delain fans over until their next full-length release, currently due later in the year.

7 / 10

GARY ALCOCK