A new Kreator studio album, especially after a five-year break and with a new bassist to run in (Frédéric Leclercq), this was probably the most important album for a while. Now for me, Kreator are at their absolute best when they don’t fuck with the formula and deliver strong, to the point and politically fueled old fashioned Thrash Fucking Metal. Now anyone reading that last sentence might be getting a little worried at this point, as we all remember what happened when they tried getting more experimental whilst metal tried to adapt to changing tastes in the 1990’s, before realising that sticking at what you do best is the true path to long-term survival. Don’t worry, there’s none of the Gothic ‘what-the-actual-fuck’ of Endorama, or the utter insanity of Industrial Hardcore fusion that was Renewal, but it’s not all blistering Thrashiness from start to finish.
Kreator wisely keep it old school for the start of the record, with the brutal title track, the bile-fueled Killer Of Jesus and the anthemic Crush The Tyrants, with it’s arena-jumping opening are Kreator absolutely at their best. It’s heavy as fuck, and all the players are razor tight as ever, with Mille Petrozza sounding vocally like the last four decades were a lot shorter. This time out it’s a real stylistic mix, mainly between the Trad/thrash Metal (OK, they did that with mix of Gods Of Violence too), but with a couple of unusual departures thrown into the mix for specific songs, but the problem I have with this is one of consistency. I don’t mind if they want to push the boundaries, but an album needs a consistent direction and not for the benefit of old hacks like me that need something to hand their descriptive hats on, but because an audience is a fickle thing likely to switch of if something changes direction unexpectedly, because let’s face it there’s an awful lot of new material immediately accessible out there.
So, adding a female clean vocal line in a few of the tracks, most notably Midnight Sun with it’s symphonic black metal arrangements and mix (albeit with no keyboards) is a bold move and although Sofia Portanet has a great voice, she feels a little to far back in the mix to be effective and really should have been a bit more meaty in the mix to balance the aggression of Petrozza. The album does flounder a bit in the middle, but gaining the aggression back for Demonic Future, but sadly the momentum isn’t held to the end.
Overall I am slightly frustrated with the record, as for a record that should be screaming “We’re back”, it feels more like a “Hello, we’re still here”. This is doubly frustrating, as there are more than a few tracks on here that emphasise just what Kreator can do brilliantly, and better than many of their peers. It’s not the experimentation, I’m all for that, but that fact that this experimentation is like a kid’s chemistry set without the manual, rather than focused, planned and strategic. Had they stuck to their guns and on the basis of the five tracks that do so, this would have been a resounding ten, but sadly this falls short. 6/10
Seventh Wonder – The Testament (Frontiers Music Srl) [Matt Bladen]
With the chug of guitar, the latest record from Swedish progressive metal band Seventh Wonder opens up with the riffy Warrior, building into some repeating synth lines before it’s finally ‘Tommy Time’ and those soulful vocals of Tommy Karevik kick in delivering the emotional/anthemic lyrics, the cascading orchestrations swelling during the chorus. The Testament, follows on from Seventh Wonder’s ‘return’ album Tiara in 2018, this was their first with Frontiers Music and saw them shortening the song lengths, upping the melodic elements but also retaining the virtuoistic progressive metal from their earlier records. It was held in high regard by fans such as myself, the band being much missed in the eight year gap between albums.
Seventh Wonder – The Testament (Frontiers Music Srl) [Matt Bladen]
With the chug of guitar, the latest record from Swedish progressive metal band Seventh Wonder opens up with the riffy Warrior, building into some repeating synth lines before it’s finally ‘Tommy Time’ and those soulful vocals of Tommy Karevik kick in delivering the emotional/anthemic lyrics, the cascading orchestrations swelling during the chorus. The Testament, follows on from Seventh Wonder’s ‘return’ album Tiara in 2018, this was their first with Frontiers Music and saw them shortening the song lengths, upping the melodic elements but also retaining the virtuoistic progressive metal from their earlier records. It was held in high regard by fans such as myself, the band being much missed in the eight year gap between albums.
Thankfully the gap is much shorter this time and Seventh Wonder continue with sound established (or re-established) on Tiara. Much of this musical shift was probably due to Karevik also being in Kamelot (I Carry The Blame feeling like the Americans). However if I’m honest even on their seminal Mercy Falls, Seventh Wonder have always been a band who have moved towards the melodic European styles of Stratovarius as well as the heavier American sound of bands such as Dream Theater. They retain this sound for The Testament, packing some nifty time changes, neo-classical keyboard solos and complex rhythms, driven by Stefan Norgren’s propulsive drumming, into songs that never stretch past 9 minutes. The longest being Under A Clear Blue Sky which moves from a candlelight ballad into full prog metal pomp. Elsewhere though The Light has a massive chorus hook and thrilling instrumental/solo section, which has displays from guitarist Johan Liefvendahl, bassist Andreas Blomqvist and keyboardist Andreas Söderin.
It’s Söderin’s fantastic keys, Liefvendahl’s technical guitar playing and Karevik’s voice that are the tripod upon which Seventh Wonder stands although on a tracks such as the instrumental Reflections all of the instrumental members get a fair shake at showing off, this being probably the most prog track on the record shifting into the The Red River which has a feel of Evergrey to where the guitars meet the piano augmented by synths, Invincible being the records bounciest number as the record concludes with the string laden Elegy, bringing melancholy to the final moments of The Testament. Still one of the best progressive metal bands to come out of Sweden (which is no mean feat) Seventh Wonder are still very much in their purple patch. 9/10
Companion Of Light opens with mid-paced and expansive riffs, before diving into very aggressive blasting, the song has a slow and very dissonant section before blasting to the end. Threatening Shadows is initially mid-paced and measured, but this builds to a feeling of unstoppability, the song then blasts to the end.
Lonely The Moon Is Enthroned is very multilayered and complex, guitar riffs jostle to be heard to create a feeling of controlled chaos, the song also boasts a slow section with chanting. Last track My Burden The Last Crown is mid-paced and beautifully expansive, it feels like the entire universe is playing tremolo picked riffs and blast beats.
So, thats all great, lots of melody and savagery combined in in a very pleasing way. However, despite the quality of the material there is an issue with this album, and the issue is the mix, it’s awful. This album has a problem that seems to be plaguing mixes on extreme metal albums over the last few years.
I hope Stiriah have another go at mixing this album as it needs it for the quality to shine through, and the quality IS there, and it’s a shame it’s hidden by a bad mix. 7/10
Stiriah - …..Of Light (Self Released) [Paul Scoble]
Hailing from Germany, Stiriah are a four piece Black Metal band that have been making music together since 2007. The band was on hiatus from 2011 till 2014, and all of their releases come after the 2014 reformation. Stiriah released their first Ep in 2015, entitled Nightfalls, two years later they released their first full album in 2017’s Aurora and the last album before …..Of Light, Into The Depths was released in 2020, ….Of Light is the bands third album.
Hailing from Germany, Stiriah are a four piece Black Metal band that have been making music together since 2007. The band was on hiatus from 2011 till 2014, and all of their releases come after the 2014 reformation. Stiriah released their first Ep in 2015, entitled Nightfalls, two years later they released their first full album in 2017’s Aurora and the last album before …..Of Light, Into The Depths was released in 2020, ….Of Light is the bands third album.
The band is made up of Cryst on Bass and Vocals, Ortok on Drums, Esgaroth on Guitar snd Vocals, and Tyrann also on Guitar and vocals. Stiriah play a style of Black Metal that I tend to think of as ‘German’ in that there is a similarity to other German bands such as Der Weg Einer Freiheit, The Spirit, or Schattenfall in that they are extreme, but also filled with melody and tune-fullness. So there is lots of savage blast beats, but also sections that are full of melodic elements.
The album opens with The Emergence Of Being, which has a dissonant start with Guitars that have a similar sound to Lawless Darkness era Watain, the track is mix of mid paced Tremolo picked riffs, with fairly slow blast beats, and slow and heavy riffs that are interestingly choppy, the track contains lots of melody, particularly in the second half of the song. It ends with slow and driving riffs , and some nice chanting. Next comes Drifting In The Sea Of Flames which is a savagely fast song filled with inertia and pace. There is a slow section in the middle, but the main thing you’ll take away from this track is massive energy and speed.
Companion Of Light opens with mid-paced and expansive riffs, before diving into very aggressive blasting, the song has a slow and very dissonant section before blasting to the end. Threatening Shadows is initially mid-paced and measured, but this builds to a feeling of unstoppability, the song then blasts to the end.
Lonely The Moon Is Enthroned is very multilayered and complex, guitar riffs jostle to be heard to create a feeling of controlled chaos, the song also boasts a slow section with chanting. Last track My Burden The Last Crown is mid-paced and beautifully expansive, it feels like the entire universe is playing tremolo picked riffs and blast beats.
So, thats all great, lots of melody and savagery combined in in a very pleasing way. However, despite the quality of the material there is an issue with this album, and the issue is the mix, it’s awful. This album has a problem that seems to be plaguing mixes on extreme metal albums over the last few years.
The drums are ridiculously high in the mix, the vocals are also very loud, and the guitar and bass are very quiet, so once the drums start blasting pretty much everything else disappears, so all you have is drums and vocals but no riffs. This was more of a problem on my stereo, through speakers, than it was on headphones, so it could be my stereo, but everything else sounds fine so I don’t think that was the problem.
Even on headphones I had to increase the volume to near painful levels to hear what the guitar and bass were doing, so what we have here is a great album that has been butchered by a bad mix, which is such a shame as the material on this album is great and deserves a better mix.
I hope Stiriah have another go at mixing this album as it needs it for the quality to shine through, and the quality IS there, and it’s a shame it’s hidden by a bad mix. 7/10
Electric High - Walls Fall Down EP (Self Released) [Quinn Mattfeld]
It's not at all a fine line between catchy and creepy. Traversing both sides of the demarcation is tricky at best, and absolutely deadly at worst. On their new EP Walls Fall Down, Norwegian four-piece hard rock band Electric High not only navigate the pitfalls of that binary system with precision but frequently cut across the oncoming musical traffic to deliver a sound as satisfying as it is unexpected. Citing influences from Black Sabbath to Aerosmith and Wolfmother, Electric High also ends up channeling the more sublime moments from the catalog of grunge, evoking the diverse palettes of STP and Alice In Chains in their ability to careen suddenly from the unsettling into the sublime.
It's not at all a fine line between catchy and creepy. Traversing both sides of the demarcation is tricky at best, and absolutely deadly at worst. On their new EP Walls Fall Down, Norwegian four-piece hard rock band Electric High not only navigate the pitfalls of that binary system with precision but frequently cut across the oncoming musical traffic to deliver a sound as satisfying as it is unexpected. Citing influences from Black Sabbath to Aerosmith and Wolfmother, Electric High also ends up channeling the more sublime moments from the catalog of grunge, evoking the diverse palettes of STP and Alice In Chains in their ability to careen suddenly from the unsettling into the sublime.
Vocalist Olav Iverson is no stranger to the sound. As the creative force behind Norwegian Doom metal outfit, Sahg, Iverson has a history of building towering musical monoliths to strangeness and beauty like Sahg’s 2013 magnum opus, Delusions Of Grandeur. Now Electric High has created their own space odyssey in Populate The Moon. Nowhere is their ability to pilot through such seemingly divergent energies more apparent than on the nearly seven-minute sojourn that creeps quietly in like Ozzy Osbourne through your bedroom window only to tuck us in gently with "The writings on the wall you know/The walls about to fall you know/Were looking for a better place to swoon..."
Walls Fall Down only stumbles at the start with Fire! An overly repetitive and displaced southern rock party anthem that does slight disservice to an otherwise outstanding EP. 8/10
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