While this came a bit later than I wanted, I gotta just keep plowing ahead with what I can. Catching up on the year has been kinda tough, as there's so much to choose from. This one features a lot of heavy and doom metal, but I promise to get to other genres in the next few articles. For now, here's what I've been checking out lately!
So as part of this catch-up period, I figured I should get back into some epic doom metal, after enjoying Smoulder's album last month. As for this band, I think they were recommended by someone on YouTube (though I don't remember who), and they seemed solid when I sampled them, but then forgot I had this on my list until now. Like Smoulder, they feature and excellent woman vocalist in Melissa Pinion, and bring the doom as well as anybody.
Understandably, they sound like Candlemass, with the big, slow riffing, the wailing, melodramatic vocals, and songs about the occult and mythology. However, there is a more significant push into this haunted, ominous atmosphere that drenches the album from start to finish. They also bring in some strings and pianos here and there, and sometimes some choirs in the back, making me think this album was a soundtrack from some classic gothic horror film. "Blood Red Eyes" in particular has no guitars or drums, leaning hard into this haunted cinematic tone. Another interesting twist this band uses is to have riffs and drumming similar to the death metal band Bolt Thrower, of all things. (Though I guess it's not a stretch, as their fourth album was pretty doomy as well.) At the very least, it livens up the songs with some double-kicking bass drumming, and gives the riffing some variation.
So it's a familiar doom metal recipe with some different spices, making it just unique enough to feel like it's own experience. Things start off well with the doom-laden instrumental title track, with last songs "Scourge of the Seven Hills" and "Strait of Messina" as more sludgy, chuggy highlights. The rest of the album is solid (though "Bushido" doesn't quite click with me), largely thanks to the production letting the band really lay out their thick, atmospheric sound. It's not a perfect album, but it certainly has some interesting ideas that help it stand out.
Yup, more doom! Though this time the reference to the river Styx is in the album title instead of the band name. Pedantic silliness aside, this is another solid slab of doom metal, though with its own twists and turns.
While Candlemass (again) and Sorcerer are obvious reference points, this band leans into some NWOBHM elements, mostly in the riffing and Maiden-like guitar solos. The songs are also much longer, going for the epic side of the genre, and the lyrics focus on more of an angels-and-devils style of dark fantasy. The rough singing of Brooks Wilson works well for these haunted themes, Matt Knox, Steve Jansson, and Frank Chin plow their riffs or shredding solos through your ears in ways that match the songs' need, Tanner Anderson adds a lot of good atmosphere with his pianos and synths, and Enrique Sagarnaga puts in quite the performance in the drums, his fills adding to the tension and urgency of these songs. Putting all the pieces together, this makes for some very theatrical songs, tapping into the grandiose scale of the horrors of hell. The lyrics also made me wonder if this wasn't a concept album about someone trying to find their lover by making deals with demons, but I wasn't sure.
While it may be unfair, as I can tell Stygian Crown is doing their own thing, but I think I like what Crypt Sermon is doing here just a little more. Stygian Crown probably has the more interesting atmosphere, but the classic metal riffing makes Crypt Sermon's album flow better for me. I really liked "Thunder (Perfect Mind)" and "Heavy is the Crown of Bone" quite a bit for this, and the title track is an epic closer that really settles into some excellent epic doom metal. I need to listen to it a few more times, but this just might squeak into my Top 5 for this year.
Shifting away from doom metal and getting into some classic metal, Victory is about as classic as it gets. I enjoyed their last album, as it was a nice, fun 80s metal romp, though perhaps a little long. Their new album keeps things shorter with just 45 minutes of music, but otherwise they stick to the guns.
The lineup remains the same, which means Herman Frank is still the only long-time member. However, his work is solid as usual, as his riffs are chunky and his solos are old-school guitar hero wizardry, and the rest of the band nail that 80s sound. While it may be more of the same, there is something to be said for consistency, and those looking for traditional metal that leans more on the rock side will find plenty to like. They do shake things up with the mystical "Unbelievable World," but otherwise, fans of Frank will be in very familiar territory. The stand outs for me were the energetic "Count on Me" and "Money," and the sentimental rockin' of "Surrender My Heart." Still, I don't think this was better than Gods of Tomorrow, as I enjoyed more songs on that one. This isn't Top 5 of the Year material, but bands like this are more like comfort food, providing some decent headbanging fun.
After enjoying some of their more modern releases, I figured it was due time for me to give the latest one a shot as part of this end-of-year catch-up. While the lineup has changed a bit since then, Mark Tornillo and Wolf Hoffmann keep it classic, as anyone would expect by now.
In all honesty, it's a pretty solid and consistent album of straight-ahead traditional metal. Things do start a little weird with some reverby guitars and sitars for the opening track "Diving Into Sin," but the song soon shifts into a decent metal song, but it was definitely a curious place to start. As for the rest, there it stays in pretty safe territory, not shifting much from mid-tempo stomping tracks. "Man Up" and "Straight Up Jack" lean more into AC/DC territory with their bluesy rock riffs, while "Frankenstein" and "The Reckoning" are solid anthems. The closer "Southside of Hell" jacks up the energy for a closer that's almost power metal with that neo-classical guitar playing.
However, this is pretty much business as usual. It's fine while it's on, but not something I haven't heard better from them on previous albums. And given that there's some pretty solid competition in the traditional metal department this year, I don't know if this has enough to get into my Top 5. That being said, there is nothing wrong with being consistent, and Accept has yet to disappoint.
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