Scarlet Records Round-Up Post

I am going to try to catch up on the label submissions.  Not that some of these albums do not deserve their own posts (all of them do), but I am way behind and would like to start reviewing some of the albums I have sought out myself.  Here are the last of the Scarlet Records releases:

MY REGIME: DERANGED PATTERNS (2017)

My Regime is a Swedish thrash metal band, featuring legendary Spiritual Beggars singer/songwriter Spice and several other members from other Swedish metal bands.  Swedish thrash typically has a distinctly different sound, with an often cavernous guitar tone.  For some reason I have never gotten quite as into Swedish thrash as the German style.  My Regime's sound is rooted in late 1980's prime-era Slayer, with punk-like intensity, snarled vocals, and fast, crushing riffs.  My Regime has only been around for a couple of years now, but I definitely like their sound.  I am looking forward to more.  "The Sound of Dying Dreams" is the best song on the album.

SINHERESY: DOMINO (2017)

Italian band Sinheresy apparently started their career as a Nightwish cover band, and it shows.  Keyboard melodies and operatic female vocals are in heavy supply throughout this album.  As far as a Nightwish era that the band most resembles, I would probably suggest their earlier period, before they became famous.  There is an intensity and distortion in the guitar riffs that is more similar to that period.  The songs are catchy as hell, with some impressive vocal interplay between singers Stefano Sain and Cecilia Petrini.  I do not really listen to much Nightwish these days, so this album is a bit lost on me, but I can appreciate the songs on it.

ULVEDHARR: TOTAL WAR (2017)

You do not see too many Viking-themed bands come from Italy, but apparently that is what Ulvedharr is going for here.  This is a Viking-themed band in the vein of Unleashed or Amon Amarth, meaning that even if the theme is Vikings, the music is far more aggressive.  Ulvedharr play fast and intense thrash/death metal with pounding drums, sharp riffs, and growled, death metal-style roaring vocals.  This album could honestly sneak into my Top Albums of 2017.  

Excalion: Dream Alive (2017)

I have been inundated with power metal submissions lately.  Mostly that is due to Scarlet Records being fairly well-known for its power metal releases and they are one of the labels that sends me the most stuff.  This has been a little difficult for me, because power metal is not one of the subgenres that I am well-versed in.  But I am not going to argue.

Like Cryonic Temple and Cellador, Excalion has released their first album this year in several years.  Excalion's hiatus dates back to 2010.  Excalion is a Finnish power metal band.  The most well-known Finnish power metal bands are Nightwish, Battlelore, Battle Beast, Wintersun, and Children of Bodom.  So those were the reference points for me going in.  Which proved to be absolutely worthless, because Excalion does not sound like any of them.  Instead their sound is much more of an epic, bombastic power metal sound more similar to groups like Sonata Arctica.  That works for me.  I have made my affinity for early Sonata Arctica very clear on this page.

The songs are typically driven by keyboard melodies, with rhythmic riffs played underneath the melodies.  The music tends to not be terribly aggressive.  It is much more melodic.  The highlight throughout is the impressive vocal abilities of singer Marcus Lång.

The first three tracks are mid-paced, and while they are certainly impressive, they are ultimately a little forgettable.  However, the fourth and fifth songs kick things up a notch and instantly grab the listener's attention.  Excalion seems to be one of those bands, like the aforementioned Sonata Arctica, that does their best work when playing at faster speeds.  As the album continues, some of this energy is lost and the music suffers somewhat as a result.  The band does kick things back into gear for the last few tracks.

This is an extremely impressive album when Excalion is speeding through songs.  The slower songs are undoubtedly played well, but just do not have quite the same effect as the faster-paced songs.  It may lack some of the aggression and intensity of other power metal albums, but it is very impressive musically.

Deathless Legacy: Dance with Devils (2017)

Deathless Legacy started out their existence as a tribute band for Italian horror metal legends Death SS.  The band has since started recording their own material, but definitely still have the same horror vibe, so much in fact that Rob Zombie himself chose them to support his band.  This has given Deathless Legacy a lot more exposure and a potential breakout.  Dance with Devils is Deathless Legacy's third album, and their second in as many years.

A lot of bands over the years have attempted to marry horror imagery and metal music.  Chief among them is the aforementioned Rob Zombie, but there have also been Theatres Des Vampires, Cradle of Filth, and Lordi, among many others.  Some are more successful than others.  The real key is to present an interesting live show, but make sure that the music is high quality as well.  The hope is to appeal to more than just the Hot Topic crowd (is Hot Topic still a thing?  I have no idea).  It is obvious the horror elements are there on this release.  Song titles like "Headless Horseman", "Witches' Brew", and "Devilborn" give that away quite quickly.  From an audio standpoint, there are the cackling Wicked Witch-style vocals of singer Steva La Cinghiala, the frequent eerie keyboard melodies, and the skits performed between songs by members of the band credited solely as "performers".  I have read that the band puts on some impressive live performances, and I could believe that based on what I am hearing on this album.

Musically, Deathless Legacy are kind of all over the place.  Some songs come close to power metal, whereas others are more on the doom metal spectrum.  Others are barely metal at all.  So it is a little bit uneven and inconsistent from a musical standpoint.  The real star of the album is clearly the vocalist.  There are not many long breaks in songs where there are no vocals and most of the music is not terribly technical.  The music mostly seems to simply be there to support Steva.  Which is not to say that the music is bad at all, frankly I would like to hear it a little bit more.

For the most part, this album is quite catchy and the musicianship is certainly competent.  Steva has a very intriguing voice.  The only real issue is the lack of a real standout track.  It is a fun album and I am sure they are very interesting in concert, but I cannot really say the album has a lot of replay value.  Ultimately, I am not likely the target audience for this release.  I don't even know if Hot Topic still exists.

Cryonic Temple: Into the Glorious Battle (2017)

Everything about this, musically, lyrically, and thematically, reminds me of Sabaton.  That is not necessarily a bad thing, exactly the opposite in fact.  I really enjoy Sabaton, ever since seeing them opening up for Trivium last Fall.  They put on one of the more impressive live performances I have seen.  I am not saying Cryonic Temple copied Sabaton; I do not know enough about either band's history to know how they got to this point.  I do know that Cryonic Temple actually has been around for a few years longer than Sabaton.  But having an album title like Into the Glorious Battle, songs like "Mighty Eagle", and being a power metal band, the comparisons are obviously there.  Now, I will try to complete the rest of the review without mentioning Sabaton again.  Hopefully.

The album starts off with a light keyboard melody, complete with air-raid sirens, that sounds very much like the introductions that Sabaton (dammit) uses.  It then builds into the first real song of the album, "Man of a Thousand Faces".  Most of the songs are fast-paced, energetic songs driven by epic-sounding keyboard and guitar riffs, and featuring some very impressive clean singing and infectious choruses.  Helloween is the most logical reference point for the band's influence.  Many of the songs are about warfare, just like Sabaton (shit).

There is the occasional slower song on this album, such as "Heroes of the Day" and "This War is Useless", which helps to keep things interesting, making the album much more dynamic.  The slower songs are where vocalist Mattias Lillja really shines.  "This War is Useless" really takes a conflicting view from many of the other songs which are principally about the glories of warfare.  The real highlight on the album is the stupidly catchy "Can't Stop the Heat", which latches on and refuses to let go.

Cryonic Temple have created an insanely catchy, and mostly upbeat melodic power metal album here, mostly about the glory of warfare.  Just like Sabaton (fuck it, I'm out).        

Atlas Pain: What the Oak Left (2017)

Folk metal is an odd genre.  I doubt I am saying anything new.  Obviously there are a lot of different types of folk metal, depending on the region the band is pulling influence from, and the metal can be different depending on if the band is using melodeath, black, or power metal.  There are also varying degrees of what percentage the split is between the folk elements and the metal elements.  The best folk metal bands strike a healthy balance between the styles, usually without the folk elements completely overwhelming the metal riffs, while being more than just window dressing.  It is certainly not an easy balance to strike.

Here we have the debut full-length from Italian folk metal band Atlas Pain.  The band was formed in 2013 by Samuele Faulisi, who sings and plays the guitar and keyboard for the band.  Atlas Pain has previously released a demo and an EP.  As a fledgling folk metal band, it would be too much to expect Atlas Pain to be able to strike the right balance between folk and metal, and they do seem to struggle with it at times.  Honestly the keyboards sound somewhat out of place at times and really detract from the guitar work.  It is also difficult to tell what kind of regional folk elements the band is going for.  At times, it is pretty clearly Celtic folk, but other times the band sounds like they are striving to be more of a straight melodeath band.  It is this distinct lack of a cohesive identity that makes this album limited in its effect and longevity.

The other issue is that some of the songs veer very far into cheesy territory, making songs almost unlistenable.  The major culprits here are "Till the Dawn Comes" and "The Sword" which utilize a lot of bouncy, lilting keyboard melodies and sing-song choruses that come off far too upbeat.  It does not bother me when bands sound like they are having fun, I do enjoy Finntroll and Korpiklaani on occasion, but apart from the harsh vocals, these songs almost sound like they would be at home on a Disney soundtrack.  That is probably an overstatement, but they are ridiculously upbeat.

The album is not really bad.  The musicians are all competent, and the harsh vocals are reasonably impressive, though it would be nice to change things up a bit more.  I enjoy most of the lead guitar melodies and wish those would have taken center stage over the keyboard melodies.  Some of the songs are quite good.  It is actually kind of a fun listen, the biggest problem is that it is mostly forgettable.  The band seems to be striving to create the next Wintersun album.  Unfortunately, they just do not have that ability, yet.  Time will tell, the talent is certainly there.  The results just are not.