Troll: Legend Master (Shadow Kingdom Records)
With three tracks over ten minutes long and the other two punching through the eight-minute window Portland doom psych stoners Troll invite you to totally immerse yourself in this album. No quick throw away fix here. With vocalist Rainbo possesses one of the most astonishing voices I’ve heard for a long time; soulful and deep, with subtle variations that drift throughout this album, an essential sound for this band. Join The Flight Of The Dragonship, opening with an enchanting down tuned riff over which Rainbo soars during the first third before the pace changes slightly, scales are climbed and we reach a temporary pause before the flight continues; close your eyes and you could indeed be above the clouds. Experience the low, haunting bass and guitar which create a swirling psychedelic experience as Legend Master Book I: Proverbs Of Hell opens with more than a little character. As the vocals kick in drift away into Troll’s world; allow the music to flow and cascade, weave and envelop as it undulates and hugs the contours. After a similar feel to Legend Master Book II: Three Evil Words, enjoy a change of pace as the 12 minute The Door, full of fuzzy bass and psychedelic channelling manoeuvres into position. Plenty of chunky riffs and soaring vocals create another inventive and unusual track. Closing out this delightful album, Building My Temple, complete with gothic shades that add melancholic layers to another meandering yet always focus song. Legend Master is some album. Dare you take the journey? 8/10
Fall Of Scylla: Ouroboros (661128 Records DK2)
Formed in 2012, this five-piece from Denver, Colorado, state their intentions on opening track Suicide. Gnarly, gritty and angry death metal. It changes direction on Filth, which overflows with the hardcore influences of the band. This is nasty stuff indeed and it switches direction with a technical death metal approach on Lakes Of Glass. There is an intensity here which makes you want to fight as the screaming vocals fight over the competing riffing and machine gun drumming. There is no let up throughout this brutal ten-track beast, tracks like Beast contain both compelling groove and death metal in a wrestle for air amidst an overall visceral maelstrom. Vocalist Leviticus Mariz has a voice that would scare the Devil, such is his range of absolute demonic howls and guttural roars. James Acosta and Derek Woolley are responsible for chainsaw guitar work, and they deliver the damage with gleeful enjoyment. At times, Ouroboros is borderline psychotic, challenging topics which other bands may avoid, such as the rage against sex offenders of Depths, but if you want your music hard, sharp and fucking angry, then you may just wish to give Fall of Scylla a try. 6/10
Spreading The Disease: Mindcell (Dr Johns Surgery Records)
The first thing to note about Spreading The Disease (and I imagine this is written in virtually every review) is that despite the name they sound about as much like Anthrax as Westlife. The Kent outfit have been honing their craft since 2014, with a debut full-length release in 2017. Mindcell is a five track EP which is big on the heavy bass lines that rumble like a freight train. Musically, this is one of the most schizophrenic compilation of songs I’ve heard in my life. One minute there is a calmness, acoustic style and peaceful vocals which explodes into metalcore with full snarling and riffing before morphing then towards clean vocals. The changes of pace are confusing, complex and at times downright confusing. There are elements of thrash, nu-metal and progressive djent style sections in each song. Whilst this is to be applauded, defiance in determining their own sound is certainly in evidence, it doesn’t quite gel and as a result often appears disjointed, scrambled and at times like two songs are playing at the same time. 5/10
Pythia: The Solace Of Ancient Earth (Golden Axe)
Checking back through reviews of London symphonic metallers Pythia on the Musipedia doesn’t make particularly enjoyable reading. Three live reviews, one from Bogiez in 2012 where the band scored a 7/10 and two festival shows which were less than complimentary about the band. The Solace Of Ancient Earth is the first album the band have released since 2014 and in that time, they’ve had a couple of line-up changes, the biggest being the departure of vocalist Emily Ovenden in 2015. Her replacement Sophie Dorman was dire at HRH Metal in 2017, but this is almost a different band from their 2014 album Shadows Of A Broken Past. With Jamie Hunt now on lead guitar and Ash Porter on bass, that makes nearly half the band on their debut on this fourth album. Now, symphonic metal is a strange beast. Loved by many, hated by others, providing a balance is a challenge. Inevitably, what you get is blisteringly fast power metal, soaring keyboards and effects and an operatic female singer who warbles, and hits notes that not even dogs can hear. If you apply that criteria to Pythia, then you’ve got a summary of this band in a nutshell.
Some of the tracks on this album are just insane. Ancient Soul and Hold Of Winter see Dorman struggle to keep pace with the frenetic pace set by drummer Marc Dyos, who is joined by the guitar work of Hunt and Ross White in a race to the finish line. It’s like Dragonforce on speed. It’s only when the tracks hit the chorus that Gorman catches up. Slower paced epic tracks such as Dawn Will Come fare slightly better, with Gorman at least allowed to drop an octave or two, a level where she appears more comfortable. However, the tempo of several songs appears unnecessarily fast, giving an overall impression that beefing up the sound of the band was a necessity rather than an artistic decision. This is a maniacal, chaotic album that starts fast and runs out of control for most of the ride. With the synths smothering rather than enhancing on several tracks, it’s hard to see where Pythia go from here. Not one of the better releases this year. 5/10
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