The Ghost Cult album roundup is back in town, for your vulgar delectation…
There’s something rewarding about witnessing a band come out of the chrysalis of development and refinement of a sound and truly begin to realise their potential, and that feeling exists in spades around Italy’s progressive perfectors Adimiron on their fifth album, and first for Indie Recordings, Et Liber Eris. With new vocalist Sami El Kadi integrated to stunning effect into their vast, deep, tidal heaviness, Adimiron sit at the crossroads of Gojira, Mastodon and Leprous, while still retaining a substantial, somewhat European underground bite, not least when El Kadi roars to take a track into the darkness. That said, he, and the band, are at their best when they explore and develop the more melodious and intricate elements of their whole; weaving hypnotic missives and clever tomes of forceful, natural Progressive Metal. [8.0]
It takes less than 30 seconds of the first track of Cyrha’s debut Letters To Myself (Spinefarm) for it to be made apparent who the main protagonists’ former bands are, as a melodic guitar lick a la In Flames from Jesper Strömblad gives way to the distinctive voice of former Amaranthe male clean vocalist Jake E.; ‘Karma’ is a strong first song with which to pitch the flag of this supergroup (also including ex-Flames man Peter Iwers and Annihilator’s Alex Landenburg). Cyrha deal in electro-tinged modern pop metal interspersed with memorable widdly guitar motifs, all with the emphasis on big arena-sized choruses, and if that is their business, business is good, thank you. If fans of In Flames have complained about that bands direction this decade, they need not look at Cyrha, but for the less prejudiced of you, this ain’t bad at all. While possessing an underbelly a little too soft for these metallic tastes (particularly the awful ‘Closure’… I have no issues with ballady songs, but, ugh, this is sickly), however I appreciate the poppiness within the majority of the songs on display and how well it is married to the melodic leads and contemporary rhythmic crunch, and Jake E. is certainly more than capable of being a leading man in his own right. [6.5]
Four energetic songs on one dreadfully titled release announce new Hardcore act Lifetight with Self-Tightled (Crooked Noise), though points aplenty for a pun even Martin Walkyier wouldn’t expect dead horses to dream of. Doing everything you’d expect, from the empassioned, throaty vocals, bass-led breakdowns, tar-thick grooves, such as that which rolls under ‘Big Boy House’, and chunky riffs the size of concrete slabs, all in, this is nothing to set the world alight, but plenty to keep the hardcore kids onside and things ticking over, with ‘Misguided’ the pick of the bunch. There have been far worse opening gambits, but for Lifetight to avoid being lost in the shuffle when it comes to album time they need to up their game, either in terms of distinctiveness or just being fucking better, or nastier, than their contemporaries. [6.0]
Known as the chameleonic voice behind one of YouTube’s greatest channels Ten Second Songs, Anthony Vincent is also fronting a band producing original material, Set The Charge. It goes without saying that Sky Goes On (self-released/Bandcamp) is a far from the obvious or straight-forward album for one so rooted in soft rock and pop-prog. While Vincent (or Valbiro as he is referred to in STC) is a great vocalist, interestingly his own voice lacks a touch of character, and the STC realm, which takes from the less rocky, more prog side of Queen and Muse is also one where they never quite find a sound that delivers. There’s plenty of nice music, plenty of exemplary playing and plenty of ideas, but nothing that truly sticks or makes the eyebrows shoot up. S’alright. [5.0]
Upping the blues content, but firmly in the rock box is (Adrian) Vandenberg’s Moonkings and their second album MK II (Mascot). With over forty years involvement in the world of rock, and having powered one of the greatest albums of all-time (Whitesnake’s 1987), Vandenberg is having a blast jamming out old-school classic rock tunes; a shuffle of Bad Company here and a hip-thrust of classic ‘snake there, and this album drips with quality. Vocalist Jan Hoving approaches Coverdale territory on ‘Angel In Black’, before ‘The Fire’ tips the wink to the mighty Led Zeppelin and unfolds with a delicious jam. Elsewhere there is rocking blues (‘All Or Nothing’), acoustic balladry done right (the wistful ‘Walk Away’ where Hoving sounds like Axl), and good old-fashioned rock n’ roll (‘New Day’), all led by Vandenberg’s distinctive soaring leads. Having said that about our band leader, despite the presence of his moniker in the band name, this is no solo or ego project and the Moonkings are a band in their own right. And a damn fine one at that. [7.5]
There are subtleties within the oeuvre of Power Metal that non-connoisseurs may not be able to fully appreciate… there is the frilly, the cheesy, the bombastic, the orchestral, the speedy, the NWOBHMy types… this fromage is not a one size fits all slice of dairy! Most Power Metal bands major in one of those, while having a secondary in one or more of t’others. Then there are those, much like Victor Smolski’s (ex-Rage) new outlet Almanac who are, at heart, Hard Rocking Power Metal. While Almanac have definitely heard an Accept album or six, for them, their back up specialty is in the symphonic. Most songs hit a comfortable head-nodding pace, they’re happy to allow a little more flab to their songs than some do, with tracks often creeping towards the six-minute mark, the solos are impeccable, and vocals a bit more mid-range and bitey, than some – there is no Fabio Lione warbling here. And all power to their Heavy Metal elbows, for Kingslayer (Nuclear Blast) is a perfectly competent addition to Power Metal’s near “The Wall” height exceptionally large stash of perfectly competent albums. [6.0]
By contrast, Beast In Black rage out of the traps with an eponymous ode to themselves, double-bass drum clicking and Yannis Papadopoulis channelling his inner (and outer) Udo, as guitarist and el capitán Anton Kabanen sets out to one-up his former beau, Battle Beast. And Beserker (Nuclear Blast) gives it a bloody good go, for “now it’s time to revive the original vision, make it stronger than ever, together with my comrades, with my brothers in arms in BEAST IN BLACK!” he decrees! Shamelessly massive, ‘Blind and Frozen’ is ABBA meets Nightwish, as the keys parp, the mid-song breakdown dances, and the chorus could fill an underground cavern, delivered with gusto and conviction, an approach that is carried out across all ten tracks… this is ear-to-fucking-ear grin-inducing Power Metal at its most vibrant. Even if ‘Crazy Mad Insane’ is a little, um, Euro Dance (genuinely), elsewhere the guitars are strong, and the fists involuntarily grasp them oranges. As I’ve said before, Power Metal doesn’t have to be innovative, it just has to be delivered with unshakable assurance and no small dose of quality (big choruses help, too, mind). If you like Heavy Metal with a dose of cheese (the good stuff, not your Tesco Value rubbery, mild cheddar) you should be all over this like a spoonful of premium Branston pickle. [8.0]
STEVE TOVEY
Other albums released 11/3 (click for review)
Annihilator For The Demented (Neverland/Silverlining)
Anti-Flag American Fall (Spinefarm)
Batushka Litourgia (Metal Blade) [reissue]
Cannibal Corpse Red Before Black (Metal Blade)
Converge The Dusk In Us (Epitaph)
Ne Obliviscaris Urn (Season of Mist)
Nomasta House Of The Tiger King (self-released)