Given that across the various sites I contribute to, I am often the first one (and indeed often the only one) to dive into the piles of symphonic, power and melodic metal offerings that we get, let alone with any gusto, you would think I would be all over Therion by now. The reality is I only came across them via a recent review of some reissues of theirs (for which I am still kicking myself for missing that there were six albums in the re-issue pack but I had only downloaded the first, due to the sheer volume of stuff in my review queue at the time).
That album was 1996’s Theli – their fifth, but in many ways it was also their first, given that it’s experimental nature effectively kick started the whole symphonic metal sub-genre (despite being itself massively inspired by Celtic’s Frost Into The Pandemonium). Not bad for a band that started off as a death metal act worshipping at the feet of Tom G. Warrior… That run of six classically influenced albums is widely regarded as not only ground-breaking (without it you would not have Nightwish, or anyone else like them for that matter) but the peak of their creativity - which has been a bit turbulent ever since, so it is with some caution that I approached this release.
Plus, it’s a concept, and then some…
If that’s not daunting enough, diving into the middle of a three-album trilogy always requires some element of caution for the humble reviewer (as indeed does anything conceptual come to think of it). The harsh reality of the attention-deficit streaming world of today makes it a brave decision to opt for - for any band. A one album concept is bold enough for most, but a trilogy might be seen as reckless were it not for the fact that Therion are no strangers to long form releases, concepts and arcs (2018’s divisive Beloved Antichrist was a triple disk), so this feels like it may be more to do with the label slowing the rate of release for commercial reasons as much as the backlash to its predecessor, which somewhat divided people’s opinions.
I’m personally cautious with concepts and arcs for the simple reason that they take a lot of unpicking to even begin to fully appreciate. The first one I fell in love with was probably Queensrÿche’s Operation: Mindcrime, but the concept didn’t grab me until it had become a well-worn piece of vinyl, as in my university days records were a rare treat and you wanted to get value for money. A reviewer does not have that option, as I’m usually cranking between fifteen to twenty releases a month, so to give anything the airtime that even begins to reflect the effort that went into it is highly unlikely.
Yet here I am…
Having dipped in and out of Therion’s back catalogue a bit in recent weeks, the first thing that strikes me about this album is its accessibility. It’s a clear successor to the fabulous Theli in terms of sound and consistency of quality throughout, but also because its not a hard listen. One thing that differentiates from symphonic metal as it evolved is that the genre has always been metal first, with orchestral and / or classical touches second, whereas once again this one feel like it has been constructed as a piece of classical music structurally, with metal sounds a part of the instrumental mix – something that alienates many traditional metal fans. This is evident so strongly in the use of chorals as the absolute backbone of the vocal work, with support from a number of solo vocal spots. Thomas Vikström is still delivering the tenor vocals, supported by Lori Lewis in soprano, but they also have guest contributions from Eclipse singer Erik Mårtensson on Pazazu.
The danger with rolling multi-album epics is always that listenability and song-writing become a slave to the straight-jacket of the concept, but that’s not happening here. Like Mindcrime, the concept is something to come to grow and love over time, and the album works brilliantly without that from the get-go. This has an enormously rich and epic feel overall as an album, still feeling like a well-thought through whole, whilst allowing the individual songs to stand well on their own feet. I will be honest, without a lyric sheet I am not even going to begin to start unpicking the story, but what I am hearing after four or five full spins is a deeply well-crafted and catchy piece of music that is as strong and impactful as Theli was on first listen. There may have been a few rocky bumps in the road in-between since 1996, but this is a band that are at the top of their game and who have successfully recaptured the essence of their roots.
Bold, brave and impeccably delivered. 9/10
Plus, it’s a concept, and then some…
If that’s not daunting enough, diving into the middle of a three-album trilogy always requires some element of caution for the humble reviewer (as indeed does anything conceptual come to think of it). The harsh reality of the attention-deficit streaming world of today makes it a brave decision to opt for - for any band. A one album concept is bold enough for most, but a trilogy might be seen as reckless were it not for the fact that Therion are no strangers to long form releases, concepts and arcs (2018’s divisive Beloved Antichrist was a triple disk), so this feels like it may be more to do with the label slowing the rate of release for commercial reasons as much as the backlash to its predecessor, which somewhat divided people’s opinions.
I’m personally cautious with concepts and arcs for the simple reason that they take a lot of unpicking to even begin to fully appreciate. The first one I fell in love with was probably Queensrÿche’s Operation: Mindcrime, but the concept didn’t grab me until it had become a well-worn piece of vinyl, as in my university days records were a rare treat and you wanted to get value for money. A reviewer does not have that option, as I’m usually cranking between fifteen to twenty releases a month, so to give anything the airtime that even begins to reflect the effort that went into it is highly unlikely.
Yet here I am…
Having dipped in and out of Therion’s back catalogue a bit in recent weeks, the first thing that strikes me about this album is its accessibility. It’s a clear successor to the fabulous Theli in terms of sound and consistency of quality throughout, but also because its not a hard listen. One thing that differentiates from symphonic metal as it evolved is that the genre has always been metal first, with orchestral and / or classical touches second, whereas once again this one feel like it has been constructed as a piece of classical music structurally, with metal sounds a part of the instrumental mix – something that alienates many traditional metal fans. This is evident so strongly in the use of chorals as the absolute backbone of the vocal work, with support from a number of solo vocal spots. Thomas Vikström is still delivering the tenor vocals, supported by Lori Lewis in soprano, but they also have guest contributions from Eclipse singer Erik Mårtensson on Pazazu.
The danger with rolling multi-album epics is always that listenability and song-writing become a slave to the straight-jacket of the concept, but that’s not happening here. Like Mindcrime, the concept is something to come to grow and love over time, and the album works brilliantly without that from the get-go. This has an enormously rich and epic feel overall as an album, still feeling like a well-thought through whole, whilst allowing the individual songs to stand well on their own feet. I will be honest, without a lyric sheet I am not even going to begin to start unpicking the story, but what I am hearing after four or five full spins is a deeply well-crafted and catchy piece of music that is as strong and impactful as Theli was on first listen. There may have been a few rocky bumps in the road in-between since 1996, but this is a band that are at the top of their game and who have successfully recaptured the essence of their roots.
Bold, brave and impeccably delivered. 9/10
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Orlando: Le Forme Dell’Amore (InsideOut Music) [Ben Baljak]
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso get ambitious with their 50th anniversary release Orlando: Le Forme Dell’Amore. A concept album that has been worked on for years, narrating and inspired by the XIV century poem; Orlando Furioso by Italian poet Ludovico Ariosto. I have listened to this prog rock opera many times now and reviewing it almost feels as ambitious as the concept itself. It’s bizarre! seamlessly dipping in and out of folk, theatre, rock, jazz and many other genres.
Proemio literally meaning introduction eases us in rather gently considering the second track. La Pianura Rossa sounds like it was conceived by Franko Zappercino during an ayahuasca experience. this is then contrasted by the more romantic slow danced rhythms of Serve Orlando Adesso, that kind of traditional meets electric guitar sound Robert Rodriguez makes when he thinks of Salma Hayek. The slow dance then becomes a tango with Non Mi Spaventa Piu’ L’amore - I Am No Longer Afraid Of Love; beautiful guitar phrases and some interrupting accordion and yet somehow the song manages to culminate into an unholy crossbreed of Devin Townsend meets King Crimson, Magnifico!.
Non Serve Tremare - No Need To Tremble. Industrial synths are the walls on either side of a catchy yet calm guitar motif. The melody has a familiarity to a 90s movie but is distant enough that trying to place it almost drove me to madness. Le Anime Deserte Del Mondo leads with a piano piece that is just a little too pleasant for my ears , I’ve never quite managed to get to grips with overly happy sounding music. Regardless of that, each song is a testament to their diversity.
Considering the name Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Orlando Le Forme dell Amore is almost enough words to fill a standard review by itself and the album contains a massive fifteen tracks. I’ve decided to review only my favourite songs for the duration of the album…. Was something that I wrote before changing my mind and deciding to quickly comment on the next nine songs. Track 7 L’isola Felice sounds like somebody gave Thomas Newman a speedball and let him lose in Hawaii . It also contains auto tuned vocals for an effect, rather than necessity. This is the correct way to use auto tune.
La Maldicenza gives us our first fully instrumental number and it’s delightfully bonkers. This is that IQ 3000 nonsense that pretentious prog fans worldwide pretend they enjoy. Myself included. Cadere O Volare - Synth solo! Take me to Miami Beach! II Paladino equals more fantastic instrumental prog nonsense and even some chugging and chromatic shred runs rarely found outside the realms of metal. L'Amore Accade is what I imagine Disney songs sound like in Italy. This one is not for me.
Non Credere Alla Luna - Don’t Believe In The Moon, Don’t worry, they’re not Flat Earthers as far as I am aware and the moon in question is a metaphorical one. Sax solo over minor chord progression = the Sex. Moon Suite fills the spot for compulsory song over ten minutes on a prog album and the penultimate song Com’e Successo Che Sei Qui brings the album back down to earth with a much more simplistic piece ready for Cosa Vuol Dire Per Sempre - What Does Forever Mean to close the album, another slower number with some tasteful blues guitar leads.
I’d go as far as saying Orlando: Le Forme Dell’ Amore is a work of art. From the complexities of the concept alone to how the talented musicians pull it off is all very impressive. Some of it wasn’t to my personal tastes, however, it’s impossible to ignore the skill and song writing abilities of Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso. If you don’t speak Italian, they were even nice enough to include English translations of the lyrics along with the original Italian in the artwork for basically monolingual ignorant Americans or Brits such as myself.
Molto impressionate! 9/10
We Came As Romans – Darkbloom (Sharptone Records) [Zak Skane]
We Came as Romans have been in the metalcore game since they started making waves with their cult classic album To Plant a Seed in 2009. Since then the six piece Christian metalcore act have been featured on countless tours and festivals and released four more albums; Understand What We’ve Grown Up To Be in 2011, their magnum opus Tracing Back Roots in 2013, Self Titled in 2015 and Cold Like War in 2017 before the passing of their co-vocalist Kyle Pavone in 2018. Following their vocalist Dave Stevens confirming that the band going to continue and release their current album Darkbloom.
Opening with some cool jarring vocal samples Darkbloom features the continuation of the bands classic trademark polished metalcore sound, which brings in a mixture of Parkway Drive and Linkin Park. The guitars sound polished, with the perfect sounding drums. Even though sonically the band are back to true form, Dave Stevens sings a chantey chorus “I won’t pretend that I wont see the end” displaying the vulnerability of the band. The following track Plagued consists of nu-metal edged low tuned riffage, which leads into ambient sounds and swift drum groove-based verses, soaring melodic vocals in the choruses and bouncy post choruses.
The leading single Blackhole, which features Beartooth’s vocalist Caled Shomo still continues the Nu -Metal influences with the vocal coder sampled intro, the rapped pre-choruses and the bouncy butt rock choruses which is nothing new on paper, but what really shows this songs strengths is the vocal collaboration between Caleb and Dave bouncing lyric ideas off each other. Also with both of coming from troubling pasts it really gives the song extra weight and passion. Daggers being the heaviest song on the album with it’s repeating siren effect during the heavy riffs, giving it a modern sounding Slipknot edge especially when accompanied with full on harsh vocal delivery from verse to chorus coming from Dave. Another highlight on this song is the guest rap section, the fast delivery and aggression stemming form it really gives the songs that extra sharp edge.
The melodic pop sounding song One More Day really adds more emotion to this bands triumphant returning release. Introducing piano chords and ambient guitar leads it really gives the band a more cinematic sound giving the lyrics more depth when singing about savouring the moment. The outro of this song has a really nostalgic feeling to it like…it came from a 2008 advert, which you can either take it as a good or bad thing. The other melodic songs on this album is Holding The Embers which mixes the hot and the cold by mixing the ambient pop sounding verses which contain some awesome drum grooves to heavy hitting choruses and their moving closing track Promise You which features lyrics of the emotional journey of the passing of their former vocalist.
Overall this was an enjoyable listen. The band have made a triumphant return with songs like Plagued, Daggers and Double Speak still showing us that the band can still deliver the angst whilst still emotionally moving us with songs like the rager Blackhole, and the melodic songs like One More Day and their closer Promise. As much I liked the album, so many bands have copied their delivery of the polished metalcore sound. So I would of liked them to explore more of a rough sounding production to add a more edge to their emotional journey. 8/10
Overall this was an enjoyable listen. The band have made a triumphant return with songs like Plagued, Daggers and Double Speak still showing us that the band can still deliver the angst whilst still emotionally moving us with songs like the rager Blackhole, and the melodic songs like One More Day and their closer Promise. As much I liked the album, so many bands have copied their delivery of the polished metalcore sound. So I would of liked them to explore more of a rough sounding production to add a more edge to their emotional journey. 8/10
Mothman and The Thunderbirds vs World Eaters Mothman and The Thunderbirds vs World Eaters Split (Self Released) [Rich Piva]
Split single time! I’m a big fan of Mothman and The Thunderbirds based on their scrappy DIY debut record that was on constant rotation for me in 2021. New material from the one-man brainchild behind the band is excellent news and the two tracks on their half of the split with World Eaters are both killer. Rusty Shackleford is a frantic ripper that goes in like ten different directions at once and all roads lead to excellent somehow.
This is the best sounding Mothman song for sure. Catchy, heavy, weird, and wonderful. Some thrash, some industrial, some great guitar work, and just super cool and unique. Nephilim is even more frantic, sounding like a black metal ripper to start, but somehow not back metal at all. Reminds me if the Blood Brothers had a singer a few octaves down. Also, I love both tracks, possibly the two best songs in the Mothman catalog. I totally dig their direction here. Great stuff. I was not as familiar with World Eaters going in, but their two tracks are also really good. The production on the World Eaters songs is way more DIY, and the vocals are more of the death growl as you would expect from a more straight-ahead death metal offering that you get with Flash Of Green and The Siege.
You are not breaking any new ground with either track, but they are both solid death rippers. The Siege stands out for me a doom death burner that leaves you wanting more. Overall, this is a fun split, with the Mothman And The Thunderbirds tracks standing out ahead of the World Eater tracks, mostly because of how fun and unique they are. I look forward to more material soon from both. 8/10
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