Damon Systema - Ate (Theogonia Records)
Ate is a mythological concept record that deals with themes such as Hybris (Excessive Pride), Ate (Ruin), Nemesis (Retribution), and Tisis (Punishment/Atonement).It's the debut album from Damon Systema, the band formed by and is an extension of Akis Pastras, guitarist for Dexter Ward and Nightfall, he's also a producer so here handles all the production, recording and mixing while George Nerantzis mastered it.
Pastras plays all the guitars and bass on this record starting it as an instrumental solo project but during the pandemic he reactivated it's and realised he needed voices to tell these story's drawn from antiquity. He has The Goat on drums putting in a shift with blast beats and percussive flashes behind the modern prog meets extreme metal riffs from Pastras.
Similar musically to bands such as Draconian but also groove/modern metal bands such as Gojira, Trivium and recent Lacuna Coil. The vocalists perform at a counterpoint to each other Nick Vlachakis of Shattered Hope giving the growls and roars was Ruby Bouziotis provides the emotive cleans.
Similar musically to bands such as Draconian but also groove/modern metal bands such as Gojira, Trivium and recent Lacuna Coil. The vocalists perform at a counterpoint to each other Nick Vlachakis of Shattered Hope giving the growls and roars was Ruby Bouziotis provides the emotive cleans.
It's an interesting mix of styles and it means they share similarities with the bands I mentioned before and Damon Systema, they let the music do the work as all 6 tracks are all quite long, none of them under 6 minutes meaning that they have to have a cinematic, structured approach.
Ate is a complex release but fans of progressive extreme metal and conceptual storytelling will do well to seek it out. Akis Pastras has elevated his original instrumentals with two great vocalists into an album of modern doom tinged metal. 8/10
Passage - Passage (Steel Gallery Records)
Drawing comparisons to Mercyful Fate, King Diamond and even Candlemass, Passage are a nearly newly minted metal band from Athens.
Ate is a complex release but fans of progressive extreme metal and conceptual storytelling will do well to seek it out. Akis Pastras has elevated his original instrumentals with two great vocalists into an album of modern doom tinged metal. 8/10
Passage - Passage (Steel Gallery Records)
Drawing comparisons to Mercyful Fate, King Diamond and even Candlemass, Passage are a nearly newly minted metal band from Athens.
Founded by guitarist Mimis and vocalist Marko Darko, this self titled debut begins with an intro to set the dark occult tone, leading into Templar From Heaven which is the first proper track. Yeah I get the comparisons definitely, towards the heavier, darker side of NWOBHM, with Into The Abyss. There's talk in their press of John Arch fronted Fates Warning and that's a big influence too on Passage.
The production of Bob Katsionis gives the album a traditional but modern sound, meaning that the twin axes on Her Desolate Land and the percussive power of Eternal Frost are as potent as they can be. Doomy, proggy and NWOBHM-inspired, Passage deliver a heavy metal clinic on their debut, expect more in the future. 8/10
Stellar Veil - Calling The Hearts Of The World (Lions Pride Music)
Athenian melodic rock band Stellar Veil were only formed in 2021 but they have a style of AOR that puts the thrust of hard rock with the melodic choruses of AOR, both a throwback and a contemporary sound that reminds me a lot of the Scandinavian bands that are so prominent in the genre.
Strutting into life with Safely Chained, there's a walking drumbeat and keyboard stabs that takes you back to the days of VHS and wrap around sunglasses. The influences of Journey and Survivor can be heard throughout the album, be it the choppy To Mend A Broken Heart or the ballad Calling The World.
Through the epic feel of A Thousand And One Nights or the bluesy, horn driven Sign Of The Times where they also add some Cinderella or some Tesla (can we say that these days?) Stellar Veil are a throwback, with a modern touch much like the countless Scandinavian bands around, it means that Calling The Hearts Of The World has a lot of good music but nothing too radical. 7/10
NightKill - Survive The Night (Alone Records)
Classic metal from a band who recently supported neoclassical legends Angelo Perlepes' Mystery in Athens. They're called NightKill and with their Dio-meets-Ripper vocals and anthemic heavy metal they do something that is simple but effective. A track such as Keeper Of Faith has a mid-pace chug to it, as the title track is a bit faster and Lost Heaven goes heavier.
The problem I have with the band is that they don't really capture my attention, they have focussed on a certain style of 80's heavy metal and don't shift at all from a influence of bands such as Scorpions and MSG with a Don't Give Up or Dio on Devil's Heart. The songs never get too heavy, or too fast, or too epic, they just sort of are a reminder of days gone by but without the repeatability of the classics.
There's nothing wrong with it, Survive The Night is fun enough if you like 'old school' metal but I'd love to see some variation on a theme for album two. 6/10
The production of Bob Katsionis gives the album a traditional but modern sound, meaning that the twin axes on Her Desolate Land and the percussive power of Eternal Frost are as potent as they can be. Doomy, proggy and NWOBHM-inspired, Passage deliver a heavy metal clinic on their debut, expect more in the future. 8/10
Stellar Veil - Calling The Hearts Of The World (Lions Pride Music)
Athenian melodic rock band Stellar Veil were only formed in 2021 but they have a style of AOR that puts the thrust of hard rock with the melodic choruses of AOR, both a throwback and a contemporary sound that reminds me a lot of the Scandinavian bands that are so prominent in the genre.
Strutting into life with Safely Chained, there's a walking drumbeat and keyboard stabs that takes you back to the days of VHS and wrap around sunglasses. The influences of Journey and Survivor can be heard throughout the album, be it the choppy To Mend A Broken Heart or the ballad Calling The World.
Through the epic feel of A Thousand And One Nights or the bluesy, horn driven Sign Of The Times where they also add some Cinderella or some Tesla (can we say that these days?) Stellar Veil are a throwback, with a modern touch much like the countless Scandinavian bands around, it means that Calling The Hearts Of The World has a lot of good music but nothing too radical. 7/10
NightKill - Survive The Night (Alone Records)
Classic metal from a band who recently supported neoclassical legends Angelo Perlepes' Mystery in Athens. They're called NightKill and with their Dio-meets-Ripper vocals and anthemic heavy metal they do something that is simple but effective. A track such as Keeper Of Faith has a mid-pace chug to it, as the title track is a bit faster and Lost Heaven goes heavier.
The problem I have with the band is that they don't really capture my attention, they have focussed on a certain style of 80's heavy metal and don't shift at all from a influence of bands such as Scorpions and MSG with a Don't Give Up or Dio on Devil's Heart. The songs never get too heavy, or too fast, or too epic, they just sort of are a reminder of days gone by but without the repeatability of the classics.
There's nothing wrong with it, Survive The Night is fun enough if you like 'old school' metal but I'd love to see some variation on a theme for album two. 6/10
No comments:
Post a Comment