Stone Broken - Revelation (Spinefarm Records)
The British version of Shinedown? Theory Of Deadman? Nickelback? Perhaps all of the above? Emphatically yes. Stone Broken come of age on Revelation, their third studio album. Teaming up with producer and former SikTh guitarist Dan Weller who has produced some of the best British bands around and as such is high demand. Immediately they began to collaborate in the middle of the pandemic the band holed up in their native Walsall and Weller in London. Perhaps because of this distance and the pandemic, it's made them reevaluate Stone Broken as a band, rebuilding their sound from the bottom up, incorporating lots of the oh-so-popular electronic elements.
It's something vocalist/guitarist Rich Moss and drummer/vocalist Robyn Haydock have been wanting to try for a while, so without the pressure of touring, they had the chance to experiment more on Revelation. A track such as Make It Out Alive sounds so much different to any of their earlier music, that you may think it's a different band, brimming with twitching electronics on top of the standard rock instrumentation, it's delivered as if they've always been doing this, So Damn Easy also brings a new moodier style driven by Kieron Conroy's flittering bass.
However it's not a wholesale change as Me Without You and Stronger are soaring, saccharine ballads that will appeal to anyone who has been following them since the first record. As does the percussive chant of The Devil You Know. On the other hand I for one welcome the change, the heavy parts seem to be heavier, lead guitarist Chris Davis getting to show off throughout along with cranking up the volume on the riffs with Rich Moss. Speaking of Moss, he gives another stellar vocal performance, though on Revelation Robyn adds more vocals than before again adding another layer to the 'new' Stone Broken. Definitely a Revelation, this third album will be where Stone Broken go stratospheric. 8/10
Audrey Horne - Devil's Bell (Napalm Records)
Ah Audrey Horne, there's a name that conjures good memories, not just of late nights spent watching Twin Peaks, but also they are a band myself and one of the former writers on this blog, held in very high regard and would always get quite excited about a new release from. Now in their 20th year as a band, the Norwegian metal machine are still firing on all cylinders, despite being on their seventh studio album, which comes four years after their last. If you've not heard anything by the band before, you're in for treat as Audrey Horne are basically a bunch of extreme metal musicians playing occult/fantasy themed, classic heavy metal that brings rock n roll riffs from the late 70's/early 80's.
Check out that staccato riffs coming from axemen Ice Dale (Enslaved) and Thomas Tofthagen (ex-Sahg) on Break Out, that evolve into some harmony soloing straight out of the Dio and Ozzy solo records, Dale getting to be the guitar hero here, more so than he does with Enslaved. The himages to the best in business keep coming as Return To Grave Valley feels like an Iron Maiden instrumental. Driven by the rhythm section of Espen Lien (bass) and drummer Kjetil Greve (drums), the gallops moving into a steady chug as the solos again melt your mind. As with all the previous Audrey Horne records frontman Toschie is in full flight, his vocals bristling with energy and power, and while Tobias Forge has been singing in a similar way for a while, Toschie was there first.
In fact if you stripped away the pageantry of Ghost and had them revert to their first couple of records, rather than the synth heavy poppier sound they have now, you would hear a lot of similarities with Audrey Horne. Danse Macabre and the title track especially skillfully blend the directness of NWOBHM with the heavy rocking of bands such as Blue Oyster Cult, for a record that has no duds. Closing out in fine style with the moody and atmospheric From Darkness. I'm glad that Audrey Horne haven't done the same as Ghost and had the temptation to shift to poppier style. They have resolutely stuck to the style that has kept them in business for 20 years (pretty long for a side project), the sound of their collectie childhoods, battle jacket clad, traditional heavy metal, that gets your fist raised in the air. Toll the Devils' Bell for Audrey Horne have returned! 9/10
Monuments - In Stasis (Century Media Records)
In Stasis wasn't meant to be an album with a conceptual nature to it but as British Prog Metal giants Monuments wrote it, a theme began to develop. As referenced by the title the overarching theme on this record is one of being stuck, trapped in the middle of things with no clear way to proceed. It's something the band and of course much of the world have felt over the last few years. The feeling of being unable to do anything about the situation you're in while the world keeps throwing more issues at you. Monuments have said that this record is "a culmination of our greatest triumphs and deepest struggles" and from listening to it there is really emotional depth in the soaring choruses and electronic atmospherics but also the crushing djent riffing.
There's the core Monuments sound on this record, as they still fall into that djent category, though there's a lot more to it now than palm muted guitars and breakdown grooves, as the style has evolved with Monuments being one of the leaders, the waves of synths make for a more rounded experience while the duality in the vocals is better than ever, the clean vocals here being a bit more prevalent than usual. The album also features additions of former member Neema Askari (Form Subtract, ex Fellsilent), Periphery's Spencer Sotelo and Mick Gordon (DOOM) who all bring their vision to the tracks they feature on.
In Stasis features some excellent music on it tracks such as the Opiate (not a Tool cover) which switches between melodic and anthemic to dark and heavy, Arch Essence is a moodier piece built around a pulsing baseline, while False Providence is a euphoric epic and The Cimmerian closing out the record with a more optimistic mindset. In Stasis is a masterwork of modern progressive metal, a standout in the Monuments discography. 9/10
Huntsmen released their excellent album Mandala Of Fear two years ago and with little time to tour it they retreated back to their studios and a bit of a hiatus. However with an invitation to play Roadburn 2022, they collaborated on creating music for this three track EP which features two originals and a Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young cover.
They have dug deep into their Americana roots for this record with only the heavyweight Let The Buried Lie Forgotten, clocking in at nearly 8 minutes, carrying those gargantuan riffs. This is a monster of a track that will reassure anyone who may be thrown by the fully acoustic nature of the title track. It's bookended by two folksy, acoustic efforts the first being the title track and the second CSNY's Carry On. These are both ideal for lots of acoustic layering and vocal harmonies, four of the band members contribute vocals though the interplay between lead vocalists Aimee Bueno and Chris Kang is impressive on Carry On especially, a track that escalates into Mastodon-esque dooming from the humble traditional beginning.
Bueno gets to show off on the title track, which is an inauspicious start but welcomes you back into the evocative, downbeat world of Huntsmen. The Dying Pines is introspective but that's who Huntsmen are as a band their full lengths draw heavily from narrative concepts about a post apocalyptic world and existentialism and this translates through to this EP as well, even though the two originals aren't connected to the full lengths. Let The Buried Lie Forgotten is worth the price of admission alone, with their UK dates on the horizon, The Dying Pines is a way of Huntsmen reminding you of who they are. 8/10
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