Reviews
What we have here is the third release of the Canadian prog deathsters Sympathy (previously released are "Invocation" (2002) and "Arcane Path" (2004). Anagogic Tyranny is a quite good progressive death metal album with many black metal and thrash elements. The compositions are quite complicated and technical indeed but they are not boring, in contrary to other bands of the genre, they seem to have a specific structure something that saves them from being over-complicated and therefore tiring.
\r\nWhat could someone expect from a collaboration between Timo Kotipelto (Stratovarius, Kotipelto) and the guitarist Jani Liimatainen (ex-Sonata Arctica, ex-Altaria)? Something related to their musical background of course. Mikko Harkin (Solution.45, Mehida, ex-Sonata Arctica, ex-Wingdom, ex-Kenziner) is on the keyboards, Jukka Koskinen (Norther, Wintersun) is on the bass and Jani "Hurtsi" Hurula (Paul Di’Anno) is on the drums.
\r\nThink of a band which praises Metallica’s riffing and at the same time it embraces System of A Dawn and their composing madness. Maplerun are somewhere in between and this is their debut album, “House of Fire”. An alternative proposal which combines many styles, as one can find a lot of Pocupine Tree-like psychedelic moments in their songs, as well as Tool-like atmospheric spots and an attitude which refers to bands like Godsmack, Deftones, Radiohead. In other words, what is generally called as Nu Metal/Modern Alternative Rock.
\r\nAnd while I was pretty sure that the glorious Thrash Metal is reviving in its former glory taking its lifeforce mainly from Brazil ….these Americans proved me wrong by blowing my fucking head off!!
\r\nThe answer to the Brazilian dominion is here and its name is Mantic Ritual! The fact is that after listening to “Executioner” I’m still trying to figure out what hit me! I never thought that a bunch of kids could ever wreak such havoc!!
\r\nA very strong debut for Conctancia, the brainchild of Mikael Rosengren, former Scudiero/Token keyboardist. It all begun when he got in contact with guitarist Janne Stark (Overdrive, Locomotive Breath) and he asked him to play the guitars for the material he had already composed. They immediately begun working together and some months later “Lost and Gone” was ready. David Fremberg (Andromeda) took the place behind the mic and judging from the result, he was exceptional as a choice.
If you are a German lad and you decide to play some Thrash metal , I believe that you are destined no to play something in the Vain of the masters Destruction, Kreator, Sodom… This is exactly the way Minotaur acted. Minotaur that with their second album “God May Show You Mercy...We Will Not”, spread all around the place classic, full of great riffs and abysmal Thrash Metal in the German way of course!
Coronatus is a German outfit and they sound close to the music we call “gothic metal”, with female vocals and very impressive keyboards. Of course these are the common characteristics for a band that moves into gothic metal, but these guys from Germany owns also some other good features as well. I ve been impressed by some great riffing and small leads, as well as the great atmosphere that their second album “Porta Obsura” put me through!