This week’s Heavy Music HQ reviews include releases from Arkona, Bewitcher, The Black Dahlia Murder, Charlotte Wessels, Distant Dominion, Emasculator, High Parasite, Ingurgitating Oblivion, Midnight Force, Nightwish, Psychlona and Ripped To Shreds.
The ratings are on a 5 star scale.
Arkona – Stella Pandora (Debemur Morti)
It has been 30 years since the Polish black metal band Arkona emerged with their first demo. It has been five years since their last album, and since then guitarist Kaamos (Cancerfaust) has joined the lineup. Guitarist Khorzon is the lone remaining original member. Stella Pandora is the group’s eighth studio album.
The song structures are similar to recent albums, with lengthy compositions ranging from about seven to nine minutes. That gives Arkona ample time to establish the main pathway of the song, and then move in different directions with tempos, textures and intensities. “Altaria” moves from atmospheric to densely heavy to groovy, while “Prometeus” is heavy right out of the gate before mellowing out towards the end. Arkona have delivered another varied and engaging album with Stella Pandora.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
The Black Dahlia Murder – Servitude (Metal Blade)
After the 2022 death of frontman Trevor Strnad, the remaining members of The Black Dahlia Murder decided the band would carry on. Guitarist Brian Eschbach took over vocal and lyric writing duties and former guitarist Ryan Knight rejoined the group for Servitude after departing in 2016.
Knight and Brandon Ellis’ guitar work on the album is excellent. Memorable riffs and melodic solos make songs like “Evening Ephemeral” and “Aftermath” very engaging. The streamlined songs sometimes emphasize the melodic in melodic death metal and other times focus on the extremity. Eschbach’s vocal delivery is varied with plenty of power and emotion. With Servitude, The Black Dahlia Murder show that this lineup is more than capable of carrying on Strnad’s legacy.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Bewitcher – Spell Shock (Century Media)
Emerging from Portland, Oregon, Bewitcher are a formidable presence in the underground scene. Their blackened heavy/speed metal sound has drawn attention with the release of three successful albums in less than a decade. Now, with their fourth studio album, the forty-minutes of pure evil Spell Shock, they are poised to continue this streak of success.
What makes Bewitcher and their music so compelling is the utterly satisfying pleasure they bring. Their deep roots in old-school heavy metal and the revolutionary rise of NWOBHM are evident in their music and also in Spell Shock. The album’s crushing and reverberating vibe is more pleasing than expected. While some moments may seem monotonous and the album may feel a bit long, the expert production of Lars Frederiksen (Rancid) ensures Spell Shock stays on the right track. It’s a record that will make you want to shout, “Play it loud!”
Rating: 3.5
(Arash Khosronejad)
Charlotte Wessels – The Obsession (Napalm)
Charlotte Wessels was a member of the symphonic metal band Delain for fifteen plus years before exiting in 2021. Her solo material moved away from that style toward pop/rock. Her new album The Obsession is heavier and more reminiscent of her former group, with her current band including former Delain members Timo Somers (guitar), Otto Schimmelpenninck van der Oije (bass) and Joey Marin de Boer (drums).
With this album Wessels combines the best of her former band and solo albums, packing a metallic punch along with accessible rock melodies and hooks. Arch Enemy’s Alissa White-Gluz guests on “Ode To The West Wind,” providing harsh vocals to a very modern sounding track. Epica’s Simone Simons lends her operatic voice to “Dopamine.” There’s a lot of variety on The Obsession, from mellow pop rock to bombastic metal, with Wessels’ vocals on point for every style.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Distant Dominion – Ripping Through Time (Fetzner Death)
Time isn’t the only thing Distant Dominion rip on their debut album, as their whirling mash-up of black, death and thrash metal tears through everything it touches. The title track alone could cause severe neck strain and it’s only two and a half minutes long. There’s still another 35 minutes on top of that, though the band isn’t on an endless mission to stay on a violent streak.
“Witches Ritual” has an honest hook to it, the kind that is as much of a hip shaker as it is a head banger. The group saves their exploratory phase for the last two songs, as “Solar Flare Tsunami” and “No Way Out” pushes outside their own boundaries to aim for something more substantial musically. Ending Ripping Through Time this way adds dimensions to what initially appears to be gratuitous savagery.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Emasculator – The Disfigured And The Divine (New Standard Elite)
The Disfigured And The Divine is the debut EP from brutal death metal band Emasculator, comprised of musicians spread out all over the U.S. and a vocalist from Prague, Czech Republic. Motherhood and goddesses of legend and lore are where the lyrics land, with these messages given by means of pulverizing music emphasizing the brute charge coursing through this release.
The beefy production on these seven songs land their intended impact, as Emasculator stay uncompromised. The EP has an unintended consequence from this, as the tracks do tend to morph into each other. A standout is the interlude “The Unassailable,” with its soft chanting and Middle Eastern flair, a sign of what they can be when atmosphere plays a hand in their songwriting.
Rating: 3
(Dan Marsicano)
High Parasite – Forever We Burn (Candlelight)
Aaron Stainthorpe of My Dying Bride’s new band High Parasite has what you want from the powerful frontman along with the bass and vocals of Tombs to create Forever We Burn, which the band refers to as “death pop.” The title track opens with gothic tinged metal that is immediately more accessible than most of what MDB does, clocking in at less than four minutes.
The riffs are catchy and doomy without the long and drawn-out sections, keeping everything tight, heavy and succinct. Think of it as how Paradise Lost evolved on Icon and Draconian Times, becoming a bit more of a rock band with elements of melancholy being present but less prominent. Lead single “Let It Fail” properly encompasses Stainthorpe’s vocal performance on both the clean and harsh scales with morbid lyrics and keys that surround this saturnine slab, retaining parts of what you expect but also being somewhat different in the process. Forever We Burn is a great debut that rocks in a way that’s gloomy, doomy and sends a chill up your spine.
Rating: 4
(Tom Campagna)
Ingurgitating Oblivion – Ontology Of Nought (Willowtip)
With Ontology Of Nought, Ingurgitating Oblivion have gone full avant-garde, in a way that resembles what the band did in the late 1990s when they went by the name Of Trees And Orchids. Vocalist/guitarist Florian Engelke is the only member who was with that iteration of the group, but the spirit of teenagers unshackled by any restrictions lives on with this album.
No song is under 10 minutes, which gives Ingurgitating Oblivion free reign to be open with their admiration for jazz and classical music. It’s not uncommon to hear a flute melody or female vocal harmonies, as there’s no way to anticipate what the band have prepared next. This challenge can consume Ontology Of Nought, making their evasive death metal fall between remarkable and daunting.
Rating: 4
(Dan Marsicano)
Midnight Force – Severan (Dying Victims)
Following in the footsteps of the NWOBHM legends before them, Scottish natives Midnight Force have returned after five years with their third album Severan. Continuing where they left off with their 2019 album Gododdin, the band’s thematic elements of ancient myths and legends still ring ever strongly with this latest release.
From the opening chords of “Megas Alexandros” you can tell that their main inspiration was Judas Priest but with their own twist on it. Much like their previous albums, the overall tone and energy is contestant and each of the songs stands out just enough to be distinct. It is obvious that Midnight Force wanted to walk in the footsteps of those that came before them. However in the end Severan walks that fine line of almost sounding too generic.
Rating: 3.5
(Dalton Husher)
Nightwish – Yesterwynde (Nuclear Blast)
There was a lot of turmoil leading up to Nightwish‘s latest album Yesterwynde. Vocalist Floor Jansen battled breast cancer, and there was a lineup change. After longtime bassist/vocalist Marko Hietala exited in 2021, Troy Donockley added vocal duties and bassist Jukka Koskinen (Wintersun) joined the band. Even with the changes, their latest opus Yesterwynde has everything Nightwish fans want and expect.
Tuomas Holopainen’s arrangements have a lot of depth and complexity, writing songs that are dynamic and cinematic. There’s a nice balance of epic tracks like the nine plus minute “An Ocean Of Strange Islands” and “Perfume Of The Timeless” alongside relatively streamlined numbers such as “Sway” and “The Day Of…. Jansen’s vocals are spectacular as always, displaying power, control and a wide range. Donockley’s voice isn’t as distinctive as Hietala’s, but he does a solid job throughout. Nighwish albums are generally long, and Yesterwynde is no exception, exceeding 70 minutes. There are also configurations available that include orchestral versions of all the songs. No matter the length, Nightwish always manage to make their albums engaging, with subtleties revealing themselves with each listen, and that’s the case with Yesterwynde.
Rating: 4
(Chad Bowar)
Psychlona – Warped Vision (Magnetic Eye)
UK rockers Psychlona continue to be inspired by numerous styles including American desert rock on their latest album Warped Vision. It’s their fourth album since they emerged with Mojo Rising in 2018.
Strings add an interesting twist to tracks like opener “Jasmine,” while “Lets Go” is a slow build with minimal vocals and “Topanga” brings the fuzzy riffs. Psychlona’s musical concoction consists of everything from desert rock to prog to ’70s classic rock to psych rock. They keep it interesting for the most part, with a few forays that aren’t quite as engaging. With Warped Vision‘s influences including bands ranging from Kyuss to Hawkwind to Pink Floyd, it has appeal to fans of a lot of different genres.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
Ripped To Shreds – Sanshi (Relapse)
Andrew Lee (Houkago Grind Time, Azath, Draghkar) formed Ripped To Shreds in 2016. The Bay Area band’s death metal albums have lyrics based on Chinese and Taiwanese history. Sanshi is their fourth album.
Opener “Into The Court Of Yanluowang” is the album’s longest track at six minutes, blending technicality with melody and extended instrumental sections. Songs such as “Force Fed” and “Feast Of The Deceased” are more direct, careening along at a quick tempo. There’s a lot of brutality and extremity on Sanshi, but Ripped To Shreds also inject groove and melody. The lyrics on the album focus on death and the afterlife in Chinese folklore. Sanshi is a potent death metal album.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
