Spoil Engine – Stormsleeper (Arising Empire/Nuclear Blast)

English:CD-review
  Van Muylem    12 april 2017

Spoil Engine is a female fronted metal band from Belgium and exists more than ten years! Over the years they achieved a lot of beautiful things like touring with Megadeth and Fear Factory, played gigs at big festivals like Graspop, Masters At Rock, Pukkelpop, Suikerrock, Metal Female Voices fest,  .... They just got signed to Nuclear Blast, making them stepping up and ready for a giant step forward!


Stormsleeper was first an EP, but once they signed the deal with Nuclear Blast and transformed it into a full CD and this is what we present you! I adore their new sound and it’s clear that they are hungry for more and that is always a good sign! Another nice thing is the artwork: the front cover makes you want to buy it!

Disconnectis the first bomb, with what I would call a very American sound: hard and heavy, just as the grunting and screaming, it’s as if a panther is doing a duet with a lion (all due to the vocals of Iris Goessens! Music wise it all sounds very professional and that reminds me that they signed before Roadrunner Records and Sonic Angel! I hear some Tool influences in it too. The backings are cool too (adding that little extra that pinches it). I’m pretty sure that this track will please the fans! Silence will Fallis yet another bomb, going on with the same drive and hot guitars. The vocals are changing a lot and go from singing to screaming and grunting. The music goes the same way and changes from tempo, style, breaks up and rewinds … It’s a very mature track. Doomed to Diehas been awarded with a great video clip that you have to watch. It’s a fast one with the perfect melodic and aggressive sound that will make it as a favorite track by any live audience (next to the catchy feel)! Weightless starts as a ballad, explodes, calms down, explodes … I’m a big fan of melancholic tunes and thus got caught by Weightless. I even hear a very clean and beautiful voice, before it explodes and the raging takes over (with a lot of backings) and a hammering sound. Towards the end we hear more of Iris’ clean voice, giving it a mesmerizing end! The lyrics are pretty depressing: talking about the end of the world … Stormsleeperhas a more melodic start and slowly we hear a cleaner voice and cool backings. Ok, this gives it a more commercial sound, but I love the catchiness of it!

The other cool thing is that we hear a lot of changes during the same track: vocals, rhythm, vibes … At some point it even comes close to Marilyn Manson and I even hear a horse sound in the guitars.Hollow Crown is from the start a bomb, setting fire to the place with now and then a few seconds to catch some breath or enjoy some of the clean parts. I start to notice how good the production is and how good everything blends in! Black Sails has a bluesy start until Iris unleashes her devils and does a clear wake up call. I hear some melancholy in the background and a touch of Arkona. The Verdict has a great sound and will bring more fun on stage! I can hear some screaming out the chorus! The fire within is clearly burning! Why not call it survival of the fittest? Singing Sirens is a magical ballad with a melancholic sound and some powerful passages.

Because of the different styles of singing I’m asking myself who’s singing next to Iris, but it might be simply some good studio work. Hell, this is simply a fine piece of art! Last track is Wastelands and it’s a bomb. I feel a bit of a Mad Max sound in it (despite a bit of a catchy sound every now and then). It’s clear they have the fire within themselves and play their trump card with this album! And hell yeah: repeat all and start over listening to it … over and over …

I’m looking forward to see them (again) on stage and hope you do too?