ARMORED SAINT Punching the Sky | Weekly Heavy Metal Album

 

Released by Metal Blade Records on October 23rd, 2020

Quick Background

Armored Saint is an American heavy metal band, formed in 1982 in Los Angeles, California. The band has consisted of John Bush on lead vocals, Joey Vera on bass, Jeff Duncan on rhythm guitar (who replaced original guitarist Dave Prichard, who died of leukemia in 1990) and the Sandoval brothers, Gonzo and Phil, on drums and lead guitar, respectively. Armored Saint eventually broke up when Bush joined Anthrax in 1992 to replace Joey Belladonna, but reunited in 1999, and has continued to tour and record since then.

Punching the Sky

Armored Saint's eighth full-length Punching The Sky sees the band going a little more to the point than the previous record, the good Win Hands Down from 2015. Most of the eleven songs are not very long with 4 to 5 minutes long and the album clocks in at 54 minutes. The majority of the music written by Vera and the lyrics penned by Bush. Punching The Sky sounds modern and yet captures Armored Saint's signature sound. Bush's voice is unmistakable and once again he delivers and amazing performance. As always there are no lack of great catchy choruses along with tons of sections that feel huge and epic. The album is also dynamic and diverse with some crushing parts, some epic parts, some groove parts, some quiet parts. 

The huge and epic "Standing on the Shoulders of Giants" is such a powerful opener! What a great song. An almost 7-min epic with an incredible build-up, cool lyrics and a powerful chorus. I can't help to think of the best Anthrax's work with Bush. I find it really fun that the album title is part of the chorus but not the title of the song. And when you hear it, you actually want to punch the sky. On the crushing facet of it we have "End of the Attention Span" which is fast tempo thrashy bombastic and certainly a future live favorite. "Do Wrong to None" a very melodic song and still also crushing. The single "Missile to Gun" which sounds like an homage to 80's German power metal is another crushing missile, pun intended. 

The modern sounding and groovy "Bubble" works very well, On the other hand the more alt rock "Bark, No Bite" not quite the same impact. "Lone Wolf"  gets a bit quieter and mid-tempo, it's an OK song but I am not a big fan of the chorus. "Fly in the Ointment" is also a mid-tempo but in this case it works for me as it keeps the epicness alive. "Unfair" is the shortest song and the calmer of all. But it doesn't sound like a power ballad. It's rather a doomy melancholic tune with a very bluesy guitar solo and an epic ending. It works well and to me would've been a perfect closer. But they preferred to lift the mood and close the album with "Never You Fret". While a good song, it doesn't add much to the album.

One thing is clear, the band works in favor of the music and not to show off themselves so while there are many solos, cools riffs and difficult parts to sing, it's never overdone. The album sounds great and Vera while the main song writer and producer does not exaggerate on the bass emphasis, but it's enough to appreciate it throughout the album.

The Picky Guy

My only complain is the length of the album and 2 or 3 songs that didn't add much to me. I didn't like the sound of "Lone Wolf" and "Bark, No Bite" both felt a bit out of place. I'd also like more epic songs like the opener which is by far my favorite song on the album. Other than that can't complain much.

Wrap Up Opinion 

While not perfect PTS is one of the best metal albums of the year, great production, sound, performance and music writing. Listening to it is a breath of fresh air from a very mature band. It will make you raise your fists and literally punch that sky. Join me celebrating this amazing and often underrated metal giants with an 85/100, a very good album.

SCORE: 85/100

Genre: Heavy Metal

Released by Metal Blade Records on October 23rd, 2020

Rating System*
99 - 100 Perfect
94 - 98 Excellent
87 - 93 Great
82 - 86 Very Good
77 - 81 Good
66 - 76 Mixed
58 - 65 Bad

* slightly adapted on May 24th, 2020 due to statistical review
wordcount = 694

Album Review: SPIRIT ADRIFT Enlightened In Eternity (10/16)

 

Released by Century Media Records on October 16th, 2020

Quick Background

Classic doom and heavy metal band Spirit Adrift was formed in Phoenix, Arizona. The project began in 2015 as the solo endeavor of Nate Garrett, and eventually grew into a full touring band. Currently the only other member is drummer Marcus Bryant. Eric Wagner and Chase Mason left Spirit Adrift to concentrate fully on Gatecreeper. Spirit Adrift released 3 studio albums: Chained to Oblivion (2016), Curse of Conception (2017) and Divided by Darkness (2019). Those were already very good albums, so I am curious to see how the changes will impact the new endeavor.

Enlightened In Eternity

Enlightened in Eternity includes Nathan Garrett on vocals, bass and guitars and Marcus Bryant on drums. The music is more energetic and positive than previous records and with a raw immediacy and urgency. The classic metal influences from Sabbath, Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden are all over the place. But the cool thing about Spirit Adrift is that it doesn't sound retro or "remake", to me it sounds fresh and modern sometimes also reminding me of Mastodon. The album structure is classic 80s metal and I love it for that. 45 min and 8 songs, mostly short songs but an epic doomy 10-min closer. It's really easy to have this album on repeat. It's fun, heavy, riffy and catchy. Garrett's vocals fit very well this music style, and it kind of reminds me of Paul Di'Anno.  

 

The album opens with "Ride Into The Light" and from the get go we are blessed this Judas Priest vibe and uplifting feel. It's a headbanger full of cool riffs. And that instrumental passage from 3:00 is just so cool, classic 80's stuff and very well mixed, it sounds great on a headphone. Another favorite of mine is track number two "Astral Levitation". Overall the groove of the song is really moving and I find the vocal performance top notch, specially because the melodies are so catchy. We also get this spacy guitar solo and some emphasis on the bass lines. It all leads to a high tempo last third of the song featuring also great guitar solos and twin guitars in the best Maiden style. It's just overall a fantastic tune. I like the drumwork throughout the album which brings a high energy feel. Take "Cosmic Conquest" for example, nice drumming right there. On the same song we get more Maiden/Priest-like twin guitars and solos. "Screaming From Beyond" was the song that made think on Mastodon the most, specially their recent catalog. Obviously this means it is another great tune. The album closes with the almost 11-min "Reunited In The Void" which is a very different tune from the rest of the album. It relates more to previous releases as it's a doom slow paced song. Even more emotional but also not that dark. It's a great way to bring the album to a close with some variability and reminds us of the other side, more Sabbath-like, of  Spirit Adrift.

The Picky Guy

My only small remark on the album is the second half sequence of 3 4-minute songs that doesn't quite live to the expectation created by the first 4 tracks and also don't bring anything really new to the mix. Don't get me wrong, I also like those songs, especially "Battle High" but a bit more variability and progressiveness here would've helped further my Enlightened In Eternity score.   

Wrap Up Opinion 

Wrapping it all up, Enlightened In Eternity is very good album, close to be great, hence why I am giving it 85/100. I got hooked from the first listen and it only grew on me since then. It's currently among my top albums of the year. I love the homage to traditional heavy metal combined with doom influences but all done through a modern lens. Additionally the music writing is great and so is the sound, specially the guitar riffs, solos and melodies. I was surprised that the reviews I've seen are not as positive as mine. I suspect that's due to the fact that the album departs from the darker and doomy characteristics of the, also very good, previous albums. But I took this album in comparison to other 2020 releases and in an year like this, a well written and produced traditional heavy metal album is definitely fitting well in my agenda.  

SCORE: 85/100

Genre: Heavy Metal

Released by Century Media Records on October 16th, 2020

Rating System*
99 - 100 Perfect
94 - 98 Excellent
87 - 93 Great
82 - 86 Very Good
77 - 81 Good
66 - 76 Mixed
58 - 65 Bad

* slightly adapted on May 24th, 2020 due to statistical review
wordcount = 726

Album Review: DGM Tragic Separation (10/9)

 

Released by Frontiers Music Srl. on October 9th, 2020

Quick Background

DGM is an Italian progressive metal band releasing their debut album in 1997. Over the course of the band's history, they have had numerous line-up changes, with none of the founding members in the band's current line up. However, since the arrival of Marco Basile (Vox) and the release of frAme (2009) there were no more changes. Two other albums were released since then: 2013 - Momentum and 2016 - The Passage. With this line-up the writing credits are mostly attributed to Basile and Simone Mularoni (Guitars). I do have a short history with the band. I own a  DVD/CD Synthesis - The Best Of DGM and one more CD and I have seen them live once of twice.

Tragic Separation

Their 10th studio album, Tragic Separation follows 2016's The Passage. DGM started writing new music in the spring of 2019 resulting in Tragic Separation: A textbook example of power progressive metal executed right. The trademarks are there: Big choruses, technical passages, fast guitars, hooks, and bombastic transitions. All packedged with a good production. So why am I not so excited it about it? Let's discuss...

The album opens very strongly with "Flesh and Blood". I think it's importsant to remember that in 2013's album Momentum Symphony X's Russel Allen made a guest appearance on the fantastic album opener "Reason". Fast forward 7 years and in 2020 DGM sound a lot like Symphony X. The guitar work and solos are just great. Specially in the aforementioned opening track. The music and all instruments are pure Romeo and company. The difference being Basile's voice. But still he is able to deliver the goods throughout the album without appealing to super high pitched range (often a problem in Italian bands). DGM as I remember wasn't that heavy and had a remarkable influence of classic hard rock. And track number two "Surrender" is a testament to that. It reminds a lot of Van Halen, a very nice and super catchy tune. They also kept some prog rock elements, as noted by the band themselves, the title track is influenced by Kansas. Another highlight for me is "Land of Sorrow" featuring a moving groove, cool base lines and catchy melodies. 

Tragic Separation is a concept album about life and everyone’s path they go down between the choices they make and the subsequent consequences they bring to human lives. But frankly it doesn't feel like a concept album and the title does not translate the concept the band described. 

The Picky Guy

Unfortunately despite the album being technically brilliant, it didn't really click with me completely. Maybe the hooks didn't always work for me or the fact that I didn't see anything that stood out differently from other albums in this genre. Apart for the songs I highlighted, it's difficult to distinguish the other ones, the album just blends it all together.  

Wrap Up Opinion 

Wrapping up here, Tragic Separation is OK. Technically DGM is one of Italy’s finest. Some of the key songs worked very well, but overall the album fell flat for me with ups and downs and I don't see myself going back to it. Therefore I am giving it 75 out of 100. A mixed effort from a band with potential, so I keep my fingers crossed for them. 

SCORE: 75/100

Genre: Progressive Metal

Released by Frontiers Music Srl. on October 9th, 2020

Rating System*
99 - 100 Perfect
94 - 98 Excellent
87 - 93 Great
82 - 86 Very Good
77 - 81 Good
66 - 76 Mixed
58 - 65 Bad

* slightly adapted on May 24th, 2020 due to statistical review
wordcount = 550

Quickies: Third Quarter 2020 Releases included HAKEN, DEEP PURPLE, NAPALM DEATH & DEFTONES

Between July 3rd and September 25th, there were some very decent releases that didn't get a full review but deserved my attention anyway. 

HAKEN Virus (07/24)

Haken are an English progressive metal band formed by multi-instrumentalist Richard Henshall and vocalist Ross Jennings. Upon recruiting other members, They released their first album Aquarius in 2010. Since the release of the debut album, the only lineup change was the arrival of Conner Green (bass) in 2014. Their third album The Mountain (2013) was met with critical acclaim and is considered one of the best prog metal albums of the century so far.  That's exactly when I was introduced to the band and have been a fan ever since. I also like a lot the following two albums: Affinity (2016) and Vector (2018). Now, after some delays, Haken's sixth studio album Virus was released on 24 July 2020. The album is loosely connected to Vector  and is intended to be a metaphor for various negative tropes of society. The band has said the title was actually a coincidence and not related to the corona virus. Musically, the instrumental bridges on the album and each musician proficiency is jaw-dropping. The singing is a bit of acquired taste, it took me some time to get used to Jennings' voice. For a prog album, it's not too long and there's a lot going on so the time actually flies. In terms of songs, "Prosthetic" shows the heavier side of the band as if they had put a mix of Slayer and King Crimson. It's a very powerful opener. The rest of the album took quite some time for me to assimilate. The video single "Canary Yellow" is a powerful image in tandem with the haunting slow song taken influences from Radiohead and Peter Gabriel. But the absolute highlight to me is the over-ten-minute "Carousel". The lyrics feature the album title during a verse 'Sapiens pervade like a virus'. I love when the album title is buried in the lyrics. "Messiah Complex" is a 17 minute song broken into 5 parts (thanks for that!), before the short melancholic closer "Only Stars". Less self indulgent than Dream Theater but still quite similar at times, Haken have developed their own signature sound and are no doubt one of the best prog metal bands in activity today.

DEEP PURPLE Whoosh! (8/7)

Whoosh! is the twenty-first studio album by English rock band Deep Purple, released on 7 August 2020. It's hard to believe that this Mark VIII has been together for 18 years! That's from 2002 when Don Airey took over the keyboards. Steve Morse is on the band since 94 and its his 7th album! So this line-up has worked more together than the classic Mark II with Blackmore and Gillan. At this point the band is ticking like a clock. The sound of Whoosh! is not very different from the last 2 albums. The group collaborated again with producer Bob Ezrin, who had also worked for their previous two albums. The album features 12 relatively short songs and runs for almost 50 minutes. There are some bluesy influences here and there. The higher energy songs such as the single "Throw My Bones" or the almost 70's "No Need to Shout" are the ones that work best for me. The slow songs can get a bit too much and drag the album. Overall a good effort from the veterans of hard rock worth checking. 

MANTICORA To Live to Kill to Live (8/28)

Manticora was formed in 1997 making hard hitting power metal with both epic and thrash elements (Kreator like). Often they sound like early Blind Guardian. They are back with the 9th studio album and second part of a grandiose horror story concept. A concept that started with 2018's To Kill To Live To Kill. They worked once again with Jacob Hansen who made wonders on the production. Running for 63 minutes, the album is a bit too long, but the song writing is great. It's one of the best power  metal albums of 2020 so far. The album opens with the fantastic "Katana - the Moths and the Dragonflies/Katana - Mud". An epic 14-minute journey with lots of energy, hooks, big choruses and fist pumping moments. Not much to complain after that either, so just sit back and enjoy 63 minutes of power metal perfection!

NAPALM DEATH Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism (9/18)

Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism is the sixteenth studio album by UK Grindcore pioneers Napalm Death, released on 18 September 2020. It is the band's first full-length studio album since 2015's Apex Predator – Easy Meat. ToJitJoD is the extreme metal album that impressed me the most so far this year. While brutal and furious, Napalm Death was able to explore other forms of extremity in music and created a very diverse metal without loosing their identity. For example " Invigorating Clutch" is a groovy Black N Roll song and " Amoral" is catchy punk rock. The furious blast beats are still very much present in most tracks, but the exploration of other influences makes the album more fun and not repetitive. The 43 minutes fly just by and your neck will be sored.  

THE OCEAN Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic (9/25)

Founded by guitarist and composer Robin Staps at the dawn of the millennium, The Ocean surfaced as a prominent name within the post-metal movement. The German ensemble have been in a perpetual state of evolution, releasing a steady succession of acclaimed albums. Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic / Cenozoic is the eighth studio and the concluding parts of the Phanerozoic journey. It was released on September 25, 2020 and is the second part of a concept album series exploring the Phanerozoic geological eon, the first part being Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic, released in 2018. This more experimental, more eclectic release impressed me from the get go. The first two tracks "Triassic" and "Jurassic | Cretaceous" each reference a period of the Mesozoic era are big and epic full of changes and exploring several musical influences. They are worth the album and together account for 22 minutes of the albums 51 minutes in total. The remaining six songs each reference a period of the Cenozoic era. Those are shorter songs with a lot of atmospheric passages. Including the instrumental "Oligocene" and the alt rock "Holocene". The Ocean continues to push heavy music forward, embracing heaviness and mood without boarders.

DEFTONES Ohms (9/25)

Ohms is the ninth studio album by American alternative metal band Deftones, released on September 25, 2020. The album reunites the group with producer Terry Date (Pantera, Soundgarden), who previously worked on a number of their earlier records. The new effort features 10 songs in 47 minutes, so it's a pretty good and concise package. The album is a perfect blend of atmospheric music and heaviness. The guitars sound great and so does the bass. Chino Moreno is doing some very aggressive vocals all over the album while balancing it with his beautiful clean vocals. Overall, the production and mix are just great. The single and opener song "Genesis" is an invitation to a musical journey, what a fantastic song! And after 9 tracks, we get the title track and closer which is maybe the best song on the album. So apart for a couple of less interesting moments in the middle of the album, Ohms flows great and keeps your attention from beginning to end. For those into this side of alt rock and metal, one of the best albums of the year.

  

Album Review: ENSLAVED Utgard (10/2)

 

Released by Nuclear Blast on October 2nd, 2020

Quick Background

Enslaved needs no introduction, but here it is anyways. Formed in Bergen, Norway, in 1991 by Ivar Bjørnson (guitar) and Grutle Kjellson (vocal & bass), Enslaved emerged from the Norwegian black and Viking metal scene, but have always exhibited a unique approach to extreme music. Over the years they have been adventurous and progressive, incorporating elements of progressive rock, jazz, and other distinct influences into their sound. While increasingly admired in the prog world, they never lost their black metal edge. Though the band's lineup has changed many times over the years, Bjørnson and Kjellson have been the sole constant members. Currently Iver Sandøy (drums), Håkon Vinje (keyboard & vocal), Ice Dale (solo guitar) complete the line up. Between the debut Vikingligr Veldi (1994) and E (2017), Enslaved released 12 other studio albums. And almost all of them are fantastic while being different from each other. 

Utgard 

This brings us to 2020's Utgard. The 15th studio album featuring 9 tracks in 45 minutes. With Utgard Enslaved takes us into another direction. As opposed to previous records, this time we are presented with short and more straightforward songs. The longest song is "Sequence" which is only six and half minutes. Remember that in the last 3 albums there were only two songs shorter than that. While Enslaved always had a thematically direction in each album, Utgarg is their first concept album. According to the band "The album is a journey into and through Utgard. From Norse mythology we know it as a landscape were the giants roam; where the gods of Asgard have no control; dangerous, chaotic, uncontrollable and where madness, creativeness, humor and chaos dwells".  

Musically, despite the songs being much shorter than in previous albums, I see Utgard even more influenced by 70's prog bands such as Pink Floyd, King Crimson, and Genesis than previously. Also, due to the shorter and more direct approach, the album seems to pick more from traditional heavy metal and 70's hard rock as well. Chugging guitars, power chords have gained more ground, and many songs have more groove and atmospheric passages. New comer Vinje (k) has perfected his vocal abilities and has quite a significant contribution with his clean vocals in most of the songs. 

"Fires In The Dark" is a very nice choice to open the album as it surfaces Enslaved's Folk/Viking roots during the intro. It also features some cool acoustic and atmospheric moments. A choice that will come back throughout the album. Also a constant in the album is that a lot happens in just a few minutes minutes! In the case of the opening track, the first 2:30 minute are packed with cool stuff, including some nice drum fills. I can also say that "Fires In The Dark" stays truthful to their sound of the early 2010's. "Jettegryta" is another song to pay homage to that period. More specifically, the nice groove brings me back to 2012's RIITIIR. But it could also be an Abbath song infused with 70's rock. There is this whole instrumental section with keys solo that is just great. "Flight Of Thought And Memory" is another song to display the old school Enslaved sound under their current filter.   

Other tracks like "Storms Of Utgard", "Distant Seasons" and "Sequence" are all groovy songs with clean vocals and the instrumental passages being a very similar to Genesis and Pink Floyd. Specially the early phase of both bands. The mellow and accousticaly dominated album closer reminds me a lot of 1971's Meddle by Pink Ployd. Another shout out to the atmospheric and spacy "Homebound" featuring the most interesting guitar solo on the album. I like the modern and bright production and also the album cover that reflects well the dark mood of the album.

The Picky Guy

My only issue with the album is one song! The instrumental with narration "Utgardr" is fine and relates well to the album opener and overal concept. But then we get "Urjotun" which I just can't listen to. I always try and end up skipping it. If you like 80's Depeche Mode or New Order then you may like this one. But that's not what I want from an Enslaved song. 

Wrap Up Opinion 

Utgard is a good album, Enslaved was able to accomplish something difficult, they achieved progressiveness without using very long songs to do so. In most of the songs despite the short length there's a lot going on. And while the prog rock influences are even more pronounced than previously, the black/Viking metal roots are still present. All their albums are growers and Utgard is no different, so it could be that i will end up appreciating it even more, but for now I personally prefer their four previous albums a bit more. I'm giving it 81/100, a good album that could be a very good one if it wasn't for the misstep with "Urjotun". 

SCORE: 81/100

Genre: Black Metal

Released by Nuclear Blast on October 2nd, 2020

Rating System*
99 - 100 Perfect
94 - 98 Excellent
87 - 93 Great
82 - 86 Very Good
77 - 81 Good
66 - 76 Mixed
58 - 65 Bad

* slightly adapted on May 24th, 2020 due to statistical review
wordcount = 818