I already know a few bands from this cool record company, reviewed and interviewed some and now is the time to discover more bands from their house with this fresh compilation (and just in time for X-mass and New Year)! Yup, that’s a good hint! Don't forget that this record company is only one year old, so this is also a celebration!
Lead Wings from Dawn Of Solace sounds very melodic and has a clean voice that really sounds like my type of vocals. I also cherish the guitar sound. The melancholia in the music is yet another thing I’m addicted to. I regret now that I haven’t reviewed them earlier on!
Night Crowned - Reborn sounds much heavier and is like one auditive attack after another one with bombing drums, harsh screams and sharp guitars! This one is dark and heavy! It’s a typical Swedish death metal band, for sure!
No Raza feat. Tony Dolan (Venom) – Sail in Rot sounds a bit the same as the previous one, but with more bass in it and heavier vocals. It’s a typical demon driven death metal track with a crazy drummer hitting as hard and as fast as he can!
Gomorra – Gomorra brings heavy metal from Switzerland with clean vocals and a melodic sound. It’s not bad at all.
The Vice – To Each His Own sounds softer, a bit more into doom metal (with male vocals). I like it. The vocals are really ok.
Mercury Circle - The Beauty Of Agony sounds just like what the title gives you. I love the melancholic feel and the vocals. It’s the kind of softer doom metal I like. It’s a real beauty, a pearl! I adore the sadness in it. I will review this one for sure in the future!
Humavoid feat. Liro Rantala – Aluminum Rain sounds a bit too dysfunctional/chaotic and jazzy to me. I’m wandering what the piano is doing (reminds me of what David Bowie did with Aladdin Sane). The duet is also not always blending in. The synth is ok, just as the bass.
Tulkas – Outsider God Creation (O.G.D.) is apparently a trash metal band from Mexico. The vocals are not bad. It’s a fast played song with good and clean vocals (and sometimes some empowering backings). I think they can gather more fans after this compilation!
Red Moon Architect – Rise is part of my own playlist on my I-tunes since I discovered them. I really love the male/female composition of the vocals and the great doom metal they play. This is one of the must haves on this compilation! I compared them with Draconian in the past, but already love them more then Draconian and that says more then enough about how good they are!
Jaded Star – Female Fronted. This is what I wrote about it when I reviewed the album: Female Fronted has already been launched as a single with a video and it’s the perfect introduction for this album as it clearly tells the story of JADED STAR! In case you don’t know: Maxi is also a vocal coach and releases here all her vocal powers. It’s a catchy track with positive vibes.
Kaunis Kuolematon – Kylma Maa is a Finnish metal band that reminds me a bit of Cradle of Filth, but with a slice of doom metal. Despite the auditive explosion in the beginning I can stay it’s overall a melodic track with a lot of variation in it (and that is a great thing).
S.O.R.M. – Gypsy Queen sounds like good old 70’s and 80’s hard rock. It’s like heading back into my youth. I like their sound a lot! The vocals are top!
Plague Storm feat. Bjorn “Speed” Strid – Fire Within is a speeded up metal track with a melodic sound and good vocals.
Dawn Of Solace – Numb (Studio Live Version) sounds like a good acoustic track and show that the singer has a good voice.
No Raza – Reborn presents a typical death metal track (not my genre but it sounds good).
Gomorra – Hope For The Righteous sounds great with the raw vocals as I prefer the clean ones. The guitars sound well, just as the drums and I like the tempo and the drive behind the track.
The Vice – White Teeth Rebellion: I like the previous track, but this one is a bit too sharp for me (for sure the vocals).
Humavoid – Lidless: hammers from the start, with a jazzy feel and lots of screams (not my thing, but I’m sure they have their fans).
Tulkas – The Beginning Of The End rages from the start and doesn’t stop! The tempo is killing it. I can imagine it must be a hell of a party on stage (but there is a bluesy/jazzy passage right in the middle of it)!
Red Moon Architect – Dethrone The Darkness: Dethrone The Darkness is a dark track, where life looks hopeless and without any meaning: death sounds like the only way out. Despite the dark lyrics the music sounds captivating and angelic (with only a few shreds from Ville Rutanen).
Jaded Star – A Pain All Mine: Feel the pain during A Pain All Mine. The guitars are raging, the synths jump up in between and Maxi sings as loud as she can.
Kaunis Kuolematon – Hautajaiset: sounds like a typical doom metal track, mixed with some Cradle of Filth. The more you listen to it, the better it gets, so call it a slow grower!
S.O.R.M. – House Of The Rising Sun is a well-known song traditional song from the US. Most of us know it from the version performed by The Animals. There are not so much similarities between both versions. I frankly prefer the version done by The Animals as it renders the dark feel a bit better and I prefer their vocals too (sorry folks but that’s the risk you take with choosing a classic track for a cover version). Luckily it gets better towards the end. It needs some time before you really start to like it.
Plaguestorm– The Bringers Of Death is a perfect rager filled with energy. This is a blast, a storm: a bringer of death!
Mercury Circle - Our Funeral (Like Xmas) sounds like a gothic metal track. I like the sweet vocals and as it’s Xmas this week it sounds fitting as a closing track. I just hope we wont get real funerals close to all of us with the new variation of COVID-19 spreading from the UK!
Thank you for bringing out this new compilation. I picked out my favourite tracks, but I’m pretty sure you will all pick out different tracks and different bands and that’s the great thing of a good compilation: we all find our love in it!
Stay safe and healthy and spread this music and not the virus!
Interviews done:
