Category: Review Roundup

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Review Roundup

Round-up: 21st October 2023

Every now and then we will choose a selection of albums for a mini-review roundup. These can be upcoming albums, albums that have been in our backlog for a while, or albums that simply escaped our attention beforehand and we have just recently discovered. But what each album has in common is that our contributors do not have the time to write up a full comprehensive review. And since we still wanted to share our verdict, we figured that this would be the next best thing! So we hope you enjoy these bite-sized opinions…

Worth – Self-Titled (12.5.2023)
Do not let this record slip under your radar like I nearly did. This self-titled sophomore album from the Spanish-founded melo-death metal project “Worth”, was released earlier this year by Wormholedeath, and is an absolute must-listen for anyone who is even slightly partial to other genre-heavyweights such as Dark Tranquillity, Be’lakor, and Insomnium. Singer Cri Jill punches just as hard in the vocals department, quite literally roaring out of the gate with a primal, animalistic growl pronouncing her arrival on opener “Time Won’t Heal”. The rest of the band are no less timid either, with Francesca Missori (bass), Gloria Falgueras (Guitars) and lone male Stevie Marfil (Drums) completing the fierce lineup. There is still a gentle elegance to the music here though, as you might well have expected. And while everything is extremely tight and precisely executed, with machine-like reflexes in many cases, there is also the natural feeling of space and freedom within these tracks. Certainly enough to let your imagination take flight while listening. The quality is also consistent throughout, although “Nova” and “Entwined” are likely to be my personal favourites. It has a decent runtime too, with over an hour of music to satiate your death metal cravings – you definitely won’t go hungry. So in summation, this is an album that is seriously “worth” your attention (sorry I couldn’t help myself).

8 of 10 stars

Raining Nails – Human Deeds (27.10.2023)
When it comes to band names, you’d be hard pressed to find one that is more metal sounding than Italy’s “Raining Nails”. Featuring members from Eternal Silence, Fallen Arise, Oracle Sun, and Sound Storm, this supergroup is due to release their debut album “Human Deeds’ on October 27th. And for the most part, the release successfully lives up to the promise of its talented roster. While not a concept album per se, the record does talk about the bad state of the world, which is a theme that has become more and more prevalent amongst artist releases in recent years. And what better hope for a cure than a powerful, no-nonsense heavy metal album, which is exactly what we have here. “Don’t forget how life goes on” reminds vocalist Marika Vanni on the catchy chorus of the initial track “A New Way To Walk On”. The self-professed “Queen of Thorns” is in good voice, which incidentally is another song highlight on the album, and perhaps Vanni’s crowning achievement. But if Marika Vanni is the Queen, then Paradiso’s guitar is most definitely the King. As together they absolutely rule the world. A solid first album, that is best played at high volume, or with a decent pair of noise-cancelling headphones.

7 of 10 stars

Accidental President – Was It Meant To Be This Way? (06.10.2023)
I was not sure what to expect when this title popped up in my inbox to review. Even now, after having listened to the debut album “Was It Meant to Be This Way?” by the Australian alt/hard rock band in its entirety, they remain something of an obscurity to me. A musical entity that I still somewhat struggle to define, or neatly pigeon-hole. But this ultimately works to their credit. Despite how the music has been categorised in the accompanying release notes, the opening title track is decidedly more progressive to my ears (and not just because of the socially-conscious subject matter). Flitting between catastrophic news sound-bites and heavy distortion one moment, to a loungey acoustic section and Dahlia Neville’s relaxing vocals the next, if I didn’t know any better I would have thought it was Accidental President’s version of “Apocalypse and Chill”. The next track “Ready Kid?’ matches the brief a little more accurately. Before their theatrical, vaudeville cover of Cher’s “Bang, Bang” veers me off-course again. At a certain point I give up on my misguided attempts at reduction and simply go with the flow. And this turned out to be the best decision. It’s an enjoyable ride, if a little on the wild, unpredictable side.

7.5 of 10 stars

Disillusive Play – Songs for the Non-Existent (05.26.2023)
It is quite a rarity to discover a good female-led band with some progressive nuances, so when one does happen to catch my attention it usually makes the occasion all the more special. “Songs for the Non-Existent” by Greek hard rock/heavy metal band Disillusive Play is the album which has achieved this most recently. And while it is by no means perfect, it is certainly a step in the right direction. “Queen of the Night” is an obvious highlight of the album, and serves as the band’s first official single. But tracks like “The Dreamer” and “Parallel Lives” are equally up my alley, and are likely to receive high rotation. The husky vocals of lead singer Antigoni Kalamara are immediately distinctive, and there are plenty of interesting sounds and guitar licks (courtesy of Jim Knikos) to accompany them throughout the album. However, the overall lack of consistency is inevitably my biggest sticking point. Whenever the album falters, it is usually in places where the music is trying to be too much in service of delivering a particular story or message to the listener. If they can solve this imbalance, then I believe that they can come back even stronger with their next release. And I will very much look forward to that day.

6 of 10 stars