The UK's Most Dedicated Metal Blog
It’s hard to imagine a time when Victor Smolski wasn’t writing. Being a fan of the guitar virtuoso since his incorporation into Rage in 1999, he has written for Mind Odyssey, Kipelov and LMO on top of his main band. After parting ways with Rage last year many imagined this might be some downtime, but Smolski has swiftly returned with a brand new band, and yet another ambitious effort in the concept of ‘Tsar‘.
What is sci-fi power metal exactly? Well if the album cover says anything about what it is, I love it already! We check out the California power metallers self-titled debut.
Typecast as the voice of evil, British actors somehow gravitated towards the more Machiavellian of roles. Characterised by their performance in their other bands we see members of Arch Enemy, Firewind, Grand Magus and Opeth come together for a new offering to aim to shed their pigeonholed styles with the refreshing addition to Spiritual Beggars’ catalogue Sunrise To Sundown.
Joining forces to form the illusive Skuggsjá, Enslaved’s Ivar Bjørnson and Wardruna’s Einar Selvik are set to unveil their collaborative effort of the same name. Undeniable that both composers are rulers of theie musical kingdoms when coming together the pair create a tangible, earthed soundtrack. However will the marriage of the two’s creative force form their own creative niche?
Retention of a title is somewhat of an art form. Seeing the less established acts fall by the wayside, undisputed heavyweights Killswitch Engage have weathered the recent Metalcore storm. Having returned on Disarm The Descent with Jesse Leach for the first time since their break through, Alive or Just Breathing the band once more proved their worth. Now, having re established the foundations of a solidified line up, in a time where Metalcore is more of an afterthought, how have the band weaponised their iconic sound for their brand new release Incarnate.
Our latex nosed friend returns this year with a brand new album but will the year of 2016 still welcome Mortiis with open arms or has the artists material gone past its sell by date?
Seasons very much govern the nature of our lives. Sheltering from the brisk cold, soaking in the heat or preparing for the death knell of summer as Amber takes precedence. The nature of Progressive music enables bands to retain as much freedom needed. Yet the difference between a balance of differing sounds is everything, without balance material can sound misplaced, not needed and often suffocate its source. Fronted by female singer Camille Gilbert, Oceans of Slumber bring sentiment home.
In today’s day and age with the over saturation of media for listeners, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd. Oversubscribed to more than just music the consumer is becoming even more decisive with a shorter attention span. Not to mention the birth of our eternal struggle the Internet used for both forces of good and evil. With the abundance of choice a point of difference seems lost, not quite just yet.