But with 2019’s Embrace of the Godless Aeon, Joe Stamps was brought in on vocals, and he delivered a true homage to original Hecate Enthroned co-founder, vocalist, and  former Cradle of Filth member, Jon Kennedy (RIP), with his high-pitched screams and bellows, and thusly, the band returned to the style that they started with, with stellar results

Now, with the second album with Stamps, would the band stay true to their style, or dabble back with thrash and death metal? Well, I’m happy to report that Hecate Enthroned are still back to the sound of the first two albums, and as I said in my review of Embrace the Godless Aeon, considering the line-up and style change with Cradle of Filth, these guys sound more like classic COF than COF does.

Driven by original members Nigel Dennan and Andy Milnes (guitars) and bassist Dylann Hughes, as well as long-time keyboardist Pete White, the classic, bombastic Hecate Enthroned sound is in full force again, and at times it’s brilliant. Of course, Stamps’ shrieks, as Kennedy’s were all those years ago, as well as Dani Filth’s, are an acquired taste, but the songwriting (and production) here is top-notch.

Starting with “Spirits Stir Within Our Ancestor’s Tombs”, which, around the two-minute mark, gets a truly classic moment going, and the album never lets up for its near-hour run time. Standouts include “Steed of the Still Water”, with its stern opening stomp, then another truly classic 90s Slaughter of Innocence/Dark Requiems moment at around the 3:45 mark, as well as the savagely majestic “A Gallery of Rotten Portraits”, where Stamp’s deeper bellows dominate the vocals, and the emotive chord progressions near the track’s climax are really well done.

Another killer track, “Deathless In A Dryad Glade”, might be the most ferocious song the band has delivered, and the bridge into a regal arch at 3;25 is pure, classic Hecate Enthroned gold. And closer “Into the Vale of Endless Snow” really shows off Pete White’s synths with regal, sweeping intensity and bombast.

Only the 6-minute “Pwca” loses my interest a bit as it’s sort of a mid-album interlude and largely acoustic/ instrumental spoken word. And the band still tends to linger on a song’s intro/outro for a little too long (i.e., “The Boreal Monastry”). Get the fuck to those killer riffs, man (which “Into the Vale of Endless Snow” absolutely does).

I’ll come out and say it, this is waaaay better than Dimmu Borgir‘s Grand Serpent Snoozing, which I have not listened to, since I wrote the review. Also, with other former Hecate Enthroned members delivering 2 fine, expectedly Hecate Enthroned-sounding albums since 2019 with Argesk, Hecate Enthroned needed to come back strong and deliver a killer album, and indeed they have.

Massive production is the name of the game like never before. This album is coming to kill your family and your irritating neighbors in a blistering mushroom cloud. Lauks leans into epic territory on the first track, “Czarne drogi Xsiężyca”, delivering some haunting synths before the blasts storm in, ripping at your ears and causing serious internal bleeding. It’s less of a bouncing Folk Metal track and more balls-to-the-wall blackened death metal.

There’s some mind-blowing musical acrobatics contained within Lauks. “Zwykli zmarli” echoes more Behemoth-style bludgeoning, while “Niekrwi” seethes with ancient malevolence. The top-notch production ensures that you will be deaf after your first listen, no matter though because you’ll still be able to feel the bass rumbling in your chest.

So yeah, there’s a different spirit on Lauks. It’s very violent, and while all their albums have an unequivocal feeling of foreboding menace, this one is HEAVY as fuck. You thought I was going to say it wasn’t good, didn’t you? On the contrary, this album might be my favorite from these Polish Metal monsters.

“Stēisan azzaran waks” reaches the dizzying heavens and crashes into the bowels of Hell. Simultaneously. There’s a foggy mist permeating “Dzień, pół nocy” and personal favorite “Der Tot Adalbert”, it being a knuckle-dragging colossal abomination in musical form.

“Korona” and “…po widok za” round out the last gasp of Lauks, and it’s already time to hit play again. This is a crushing album; it’s not a walk through the tulips. It’s thorny, and it might hurt you if you let your guard down. For the hordes that love Behemoth, Kawir and Vader. Get it now!

Apparently, the members were in a band called Locistellar that dissolved I guess and ever since then they’ve put out four singles under the Lacabra banner, starting with “Fractured” (2022), “Human Quilt” (2023), “Fractured” (2024) and “Enemy” (2025); all leading up till this point of a full-length, proper record. So, how is it?

Holy Hypocrisy, Batman! It’s pretty fucking good, not going to lie; I’m pretty fucking impressed with it. There’s something for all tastes and it sounds phenomenal while delivering the goods in true 2000s Melodic Death Metal fashion. This isn’t all rampant Hypocrisy worship as there are nods to Arch Enemy (Doomsday Machine era), Carcass (Heartwork era), and even The Absence.

“Blood of the Goat 1876” gets it going with some killer riffing and then the galloping rhythm takes over, with a huge The Arrival vibe. It’s a badass song and they even sneak in some clean vocals near the end.

It’s hard to not get stuck in the weeds of comparisons, “Fallacy” bursts out with some Catch-22 era Hypocrisy with a twisted riff and a shredding solo over some ultra-quick drums. “Human Quilt” is this brutish beat-down with some samples thrown in for good measure. Some super tasty interludes make it a favorite track.

“Nothing” is sort of a vanilla track, there’s a cool riff but it’s a pretty standard Melodic Death Metal song with some more clean vocals, it gets better near the end but overall it’s kind of a filler song. Some cool riffs but… “Reprobate” is a much better track. Coming in hot as fuck with a “Nemesis”, fat Arch Enemy riff and some tasty blasting throughout; proving that sometimes brutal speed is best.

“Enemy(Feeding the Flames)” is a sweet as fuck thrasher, another fat riff opens it up for the world to see, it’s a nasty track that doesn’t let up for it’s 3:52 minute run. “I am Thee” starts off with this weird ass riff before the blasts kick in, this is a bit of a mechanized Black Metal track, just ridiculous fun.

“The Devil’s Mechanic” is a familiar-sounding song, in that the riffs are kinda similar to another song but I can’t put a name to it. It’s a very Arch Enemy sounding track so maybe that’s who it’s reminiscent of.

“Fractured” has an Abducted feeling that I can’t shake, particularly “Slipping Away” the last track from that album. This is a cosmic journey and is the perfect ending to this self-titled, overall beastly album.

So despite one sort of boring song, Lacabra is a solid Melodic Death Metal album. It nods to its influences i.e.; Hypocrisy, Arch Enemy and Crypta, just to name three. If this sounds like something you’d enjoy then I suggest you check this album out and let the Melodic Death Metal wash over your eardrums.

I’m not familiar with their previous efforts, but one doesn’t need to be when exploring The Moral Chokehold. The band is listed as groove metal on Ye Olde Encyclopedia of Metal, and while that may be apt, I would place them firmly in that “New Wave of American Heavy Metal” style. Take any track as an example, but I’ll begin with “Nietzche and the Fall” with its metalcore chorus. What isn’t metalcore is the rest of the guitar lines having a tinge of Gojira to them.

Further on, there is a palpable Lamb of God gallop to the riffing, specifically in “Social War Machine.” The chorus has a massive, meaty hook with another melody approach like Gojira. They don’t skimp on the tasty solos either as the one starting with slightly over a minute remaining delivers the final chorus on a platter meant to be consumed through your mouth butt.

Nothing is stale or all the same, though. Take for example, “The Light.” There’s a buildup for the first minute, but it is the opener. The verse riff is appropriately chunky, and I can’t help but feel as though the furious moments with less than 2 minutes remaining could have made a larger impact with some disgusting, filthy heft. That’s just me wanting everything to have a death metal production when not every album is death metal. Regardless, it’s a great track, and very indicative of the rest of the album.

I’ve listened to a lot of this style over the years and “Noctivigant” immediately makes me think of God Forbid. Does that have anything to do with the fact I listened to Gone Forever not long before this? No comment. However, the clean vocals sound like Doc Coyle, but are different enough to be in no way a copy. The finger-tapping does recall another band I’ve mentioned earlier. The final minute is where the track truly shines, though.

There’s something to be said for an album that’s not reinventing any steel but accomplishes its goal with exuberance. There are earworms for days if you’re into that kind of thing (No RFK, I didn’t say “brain worms”). If you listen to The Moral Chokehold, I believe you’ll be humming at least one track after as the hooks do get embedded. Maybe a new metalcore, or at least metalcore-adjacent album, isn’t going to get the loins tingling for a fair amount of our readership, but for those who dip their toes, check it out, and I think you’ll like what you hear.

Well, there are a couple of changes in the Aversed camp. First, the jump up a league to the Century Media records offshoot label, M-Theory audio (Scardust, Warbringer, The Abscence, Hecate Enthroned, Into Eternity), And Second, the switch in vocalists from Irizarry to Sarah Hartman (Metanoia).

Now, casual listeners might not notice (heck, I initially didn’t notice), as Hartmann has a similar growl/clean singing approach, but after going back and listening to Impermanent, Irizarry had more operatic/classical /Gothic metal range in her clean vocals, while Hartmann has a little more Adrien Cowan (Seven Spires) in her delivery of growls/ screams and clean singing, and she has a little more variety in her screams and growls.

Songwriting-wise, the band seems to also have added a little variety. While certainly still melodic death metal, they are a little less radio friendly and Arch Enemy sounding then the debut, as it appears drummer Jeff Saltzman has taken some cues from his other band Allegaeon, and gotten a little more complex and a little more brutal, though Hartman still has a more expansive appeal with her clean choruses.

Just listen to the standout single “Cross to Bear”, where everything new comes together perfectly with a blistering yet emotive chorus that highlights Saltzman’s blast beats and Hartmann’s excellent singing. The same can be said for “Inexorable” and “Erasure of Color”, where everything is a little more aggressive than the debut but still balanced.

At times I get a Jinjer vibe as heard on the skronky “Lucid Decapitation” and “Burn”, then they calm things down a bit with “Solitary”, which also reminded me of some of Jinjer and Tatiana  Shmayluk’s more restrained moments. The album ends with a short acoustic number “Yearning”, and the moody semi-ballad”Departures”, ending the album on a perfect emotional endnote, as Hartmann spread her wings.

Erasure of Color does exactly what a second album and a jump from unsigned to signed should do; improve on the debut, add a little development, and still retain the core sound, and Erasure of Color does that perfectly. Let’s see what they do with the all-important, often watershed third album, as with bands like Jinjer, Spiritbox, and Face Yourself, deservedly blowing up and giving much-needed attention to female metal singers, the time is right for another band to blow up.

However, Broken Hope reformed and released some more albums, but Earthburner was always sort of lurking around and Wagner kept writing music for the project since 2002.

Well, now that music has been released with Earthburner’s debut album, and Wagner brought along a few well-known friends to help out. On vocals, there is Devin Swank (Sanguisugabogg), on guitars, on bass is Tyler Affinito (Gloryhole Guillotine), and fittingly, Mitch Harris of Napalm Death fame helps out as an ‘honorary’ member, providing some feral screams.

The result, (including the album artwork) considering the members and timeline of the project’s formation is a pretty damn good example of late 90s/ early 2000s Deathgrind that reeks of Broken Hope, Napalm Death, Terrorizer, Lock Up, Divine Empire, and Hateplow.

The grindcore element is on full display with the album’s short 21-minute run time, and the 11 songs display blistering, grindcore-driven pacing and riffs, with an expected 90s death metal backbone from Wagner and Mizek.

The power chord-driven riffs and hefty occasional grooves are pure nostalgia but armed with powerful modern death metal production (note: there are two versions of the album with two different mastering efforts- an analog and a digital one). Swank and Harris deliver the classic grindcore dual vocals, and it all hits just perfectly.

From the opener “Necrodisiac” through “Broken Head”, “Facelift”, “Permanent Dawn”, “Perception For Profit”, “Slaves to the Screen” and closer “Positive Outlook”  it’s a simple, no-frills throwback to a simpler time and sound that satisfies the classic grindcore itch perfectly.

The second song, “Reverie” reminds me of groups like Agalloch and Borknagar. “Sense Amplified” opens with some beautiful clean acoustic and bass parts before a nice orchestral string section is added to provide additional melody. The tempo picks up and the grim vocals kick in.

“Sun and Moon” is up next and is one of the longer tracks on the album. Opening again with gorgeous guitar and bass work accompanied by strings which transitions into an almost ethereal trance-like vocal pattern.  This musicianship through the album is top-notch and is incredibly impressive. “A Consciousness Throughout Time” is another beautiful, spacey track. The songs on the album go anywhere from five to eight minutes. “Vermillion Fog of War” is has a bit of folk metal vibe to it before a cool guitar break before going into the verse.

“Spoken Into Will” opens with a solo guitar line with a string accompaniment. For not being familiar with their material Amiensus does a wonderful job maintaining atmosphere throughout the album. “Transcendence Through Grief’ finishes the album and starts with some nice bluesy-sounding guitar leads with acoustic guitar underneath. The whole track is a nice instrumental to finish up the album.

At a run time of around an hour, this is an ambitious listen. I look forward to what these guys do in the future. If you are looking for meticulous melodic black metal with a bit of a post-metal feel, give it a spin.

Portal is the band’s second album and continues the story that started on the band’s debut, The 39th Spirit, focusing on an alternate dystopian world driven by demonic influence on politics and world finance.

With that thematic backdrop, Malphas plays modern melodic death/black metal with a strong orchestral backbone. The orchestration and choral arrangements are very well done with a strong cinematic  Dimmu Borgir/Septic Flesh/Rotting Christ dramatic element to the proceedings that back the song’s stories and themes well. However, the songs themselves are not quite as impressive.

Not that anything here is bad, it’s just even with the dramatic synths and storyline, only a few of the riffs or songs really hit despite a concerted, admirable effort from the entire band.  It’s not until the 6th song “Shadow and Blood on Jekyll Isle” that I actually dig a riff the band delivers and then “Pale Eyes to Snowy Skies” shortly after, provides a somber mid-paced change-up that’s solid. The 12-minute closer “Man, Raven, and the Portal”, finally delivers a killer song with an epic, story, and album endnote mainly due to the excellent orchestration and female vocals choirs.

Attempts to be a bit more menacing and urgent (“Leviathan’s Moonlit Sanctum”, “Atonement”) fall a bit flat.  And at times, the theatrics and character-driven vocals often remind me a bit of Ancient’s Mad Grandiose Bloodfiends. Not good.

I really wanted to like Portal more. In theory, it has everything I enjoy in a metal album, but the weak songwriting just holds it back, even with the top-notch orchestration and solid production.  Though the final track shows there is potential here. And it’s even more disappointing that it’s on a semi-large label responsible for releases I have really enjoyed like Hecate Enthroned, Black Royal, The Abscence and such.

Subsequently, this spring I’ll be listening to The Dark Horizon by Veriteras for my US-based symphonic, melodic death metal.

I’ve taken several of those opportunities to listen to Tegmentum’s Evolvement. While not a new band, it’s new in this form with original, founding, and for a time only member Michael Ball recruiting Dawn of Ouroboros vocalist Chelsea Murphy, Fallujah’s Andrew Baird on drums, and Kenji Tsunami of Narcotic Wasteland on bass. Supergroup? Maybe in a sense. Super talented? Absolutely.

One of the shorter tracks starts after a brief intro. While “Moments Ago” is not as expansive as the rest of the album, it does set the stage appropriately for what’s to come. What’s coming is a combination of many different metal styles, sitting somewhere between Humanity’s Last Breath and Fallujah.

“Accolades” is the very next one. It’s nearly 7 minutes and starts with a minute of a jazz-influenced guitar lead, making way for Chelsea’s formidable vocals. If you were expecting prog, you’ll get it, but the leads, the djenty grooves, and vocals all paint a ‘Fallujah if they wrote better songs’ vibe. No disrespect to them because I do like the band, I just don’t seem to “get it” as much as others. There are certainly some deathcore elements in the section about 3 minutes in, but the song is immediately flipped into a clean vocals section.

“Genetic Assimilation,” track 6, starts with a scream that sounds like Chelsea hit her foot on the end of a coffee table. I know that scream. We’ve all been there. Otherwise, around 2 minutes in, there’s a hammering breakdown with an effective “BLEGH.” Shit, I hope I don’t upset that Architects guy who invented those. This track also nears 7 minutes, with an extended guitar solo section. I get it, dawg. I should just give up on the guitar. There’s another breakdown near the end of the track. I think both in this can be described perfectly as “space breakdowns.”

Well, god damn it if the last track isn’t the longest. “Gospel of Sand” is nearly 10 minutes. I’m not sure the last 3 count, though. Only a couple minutes in, there’s a brief clean section (not the vocals, just instruments), which leads into some deathcore moments/riffs. A little bit further, there’s an expectedly excellent solo section. Then, more rumbling deathcore. Some horrifying atmospherics end the track.

I am not meaning this to come off as salty or negative as it may, but this album is what I always thought Fallujah could be, yet they were always weighed down by production… choices. Luckily, I’ve seen them a few times live and they’re better than on record. I’m sure Tegmentum, if it ever happens will be great live as well, but until then, be satisfied with another, and say it with me; sleeper AOTY pick.

Beginning with the instrumental “I” Varmia prepare you for what’s to come before “Sva” begins the lightning assault, with furious blast beats and thrashing controlled chaos. “Agre” is the first single and it’s another crushing track like a broadsword to the chest. However, it’s after the instrumental “II” that my personal favorite track comes rumbling in like an armored column “Kad saule Div” is a fucking monster of a track that will go down wonderfully in a festival setting this summer, I’m sure. Its followed by “Swaixtan” which is another rolling thunder, brutal beatdown. It takes “III” to calm things down before “Dies Tremor” and “End” propel the album towards the final tracks “IV” the final instrumental before second single “Daina 4” and “Afterglow” completes this saga. Prolog is already on my EP of the year list so it makes perfect sense that Nie nas widzę will be pushing its way into the top of the pile come 2024, as well.

Having said that, the album benefits from amazing production that allows each instrument to shine through. I’ll be recommending this to everyone, as it’s a blistering release for fans of Drudkh, Nokturnal Mortum, Negură Bunget, Arkona (Rus) and Kouta (which, if you haven’t investigated them, you really need to). I think it’s already out so what are you waiting for?

Occasionally a vocal technique called the “whitevoice” soaring, clean vocals was utilized in ancient East-Central European rituals. Don’t get me wrong though because this isn’t some Pagan Black Metal opera, far from it. At its core Prolog is a raging slab of Polish Black Metal, seething and pulsing with the history of ages.

“Oddal” is a lurching, siege of power, acting as a ritual within itself at the 3.20-mark thrashy as fuck and a furious blast of Heathen fury. At 4.25 its animalistic core shows as the song races towards its stunning end. “Gorzkie Fale” is the belly of the beast, a culmination of vitriolic, bestial… glorious Heathenistic energy. Being a three-track EP, it makes it hard to pick a favorite track, this is because they flow together, and it works out perfectly because it bonds the album together like spiritual glue. “3.3” is the victory party, it comes in quiet like a specter from the mist; its arrival is boosted by acoustic guitars as well as traditional instruments.

Based on this album, I went back and got their first three albums Z Mar Twych, W Ciele Nie, and Bal Lada. For people who enjoy Nokturnal Mortum, Hate Forest, Enslaved, Falkenbach and Satyricon. Varmia has made a fantastic Pagan Black Metal record, even though it’s an EP it bulges with the size of a full-length. I highly recommend this.

For over 15 years now, if I found myself wanting to listen to American Melodic Death Metal, the choice of who to listen to has remained pretty clear – I’m going with The Absence almost every time.

Maybe it seems a little harsh – and I swear I don’t mean it as any kind of insult – but that’s pretty much the only reason you listen to The Absence, right? We’re not talking about a group of genre-benders or particularly musically-progressive metalheads here, we’re talking a group of Floridians who are very fond of a particular sound and are very, VERY good at delivering it – and on Coffinized, The Absence are back at it again delivering exactly what you’d expect, which is still a very, very good thing. “MEHHHH They’re still just ripping off At The Ga” SHOVE IT DORK I DON’T CARE.

The boys from Tampa get right down to business on the title-track opener, and really don’t bother letting the foot off their all-things-Melodeath-worshipping pedal for the whole of this fantastic ride. But while this all may seem a bit familiar to you (is that such a bad thing these days?) – it seems clear that the time spent in isolation during the past year has only served as a creative muse for the band. The end product feels fully energized and focused – channeling a year’s worth of loneliness, frustration and sorrow – along with the hope and victories hidden amongst all the bullshit – into a collection of songs that feel at times as bleak (the heavier, plodding middle section of “Cathedral Dawn” or the more frantic, early-Arch Enemy riffing of “Radiant Devastation”, ) as they often do triumphant (check out those epic leads at the end of “Aperture Expands).

Seriously though, if Melodic Death Metal is your thing, Coffinized, as the band has done time and again, is just chock full of recalls from the best of the best. Where the title track and follow-up “Future Terminal” could each be lifted straight from the Slaughter of the Soul playbook, “Discordia” and “Treacherous” could just as easily be special edition extras from “The Chainheart Machine” or “A Predator’s Portrait.” Along with the aforementioned “Radiant Devastation,” “Black Providence” has me fondly recalling the Burning Bridges/Wages of Sin Arch Enemy glory years with total glee. Call it “worship” or “ripping off” or whatever the hell you want, but guitarist Taylor Nordberg wears his influences confidently on his sleeve, and pulls off an utterly convincing, spot-on performance that’d have you believing he was right there in Gothenburg in the 90s helping pioneer the genre. The riffing is crisp and inspired throughout the album, and the signature melodies and leads are as invigorated as ever. In fact there isn’t a lacking performance anywhere to be found here – the vocals, the drums, the bass, the production, everything is sharp as a tack and on-point.

Look, you know exactly who this band is, you know exactly what this album is, and chances are, you already know whether or not you’re at all interested in it. If you’re over the whole Melodeath thing, or you were never into it to begin with, I’m sure I lost you a while ago. Fine. For those of you still here, know this – Coffinized proves that the band’s comeback with A Gift for the Obsessed was just the start of the band’s rebirth. They’re back, and they’re better than ever. Sure, there’s a whole lot of newer, shinier forms of metal out there worth your time, effort and money that might not get you ridiculed for holding on to such an “outdated” sound. But fuck ‘em. If Melodic Death metal still brings you joy in 2021, or if you’re a new metalhead who hasn’t yet explored it, you still can’t do much better than these dudes for a stellar American example. Black Dahlia Murder? Ya’ll are great. Light This City? I love ya, truly. But for my money? I’m still riding with The Absence.

Which is a goddamn shame for me, ain’t it?! Between guitarist Jeff Loomis getting himself trapped and buried somewhere inside the Michael Amott/Arch Enemy audio content factory, and drummer Van Williams out there just doing his thing, the improbability of Nevermore returning to make more music is overwhelming – and that’s before the memory of Warrel Dane’s untimely death rears itself from the dark recesses of my mind and renders the whole idea moot anyway.

By now you’ve probably stopped and thought to yourself, “wait, this isn’t a Nevermore review what the hell?” and, because I know you all are so clever, know where I’m going with all of this.

A couple years ago Oregon’s Silver Talon came out with Becoming a Demon, a super solid, neoclassical-tinged Power Metal album that certainly put plenty of talent and potential on display. One thing that stood out to me – was how much singer Wyatt Howell, at times, really sounded more than a little bit like Warrel Dane. The album even featured a guest solo by, you guessed it, the incomparable Jeff Loomis. It certainly seemed that these dudes held their legendary Pacific Northwest brethren in high regard. Then last year, the band released a brand new single called “Deceiver, I am” and things were a little bit different, and yet very much familiar… The riffs, the vocal patterns and stylings, the mix of beautiful melody and crushing heft, hell – even the song’s title itself – it all felt very, VERY Nevermore-ish. And sure enough, it turns out their new LP Decadence and Decay, might just be the replacement I’ve needed to scratch that itch.

Decadence and Decay isn’t outright thievery or a carbon copy of Nevermore’s work by any stretch – I don’t think there can truly be a replication of Jeff Loomis or Warrel Dane – but the influence and admiration is certainly here and proudly on display, mixed with some of the sounds established on “Becoming a Demon.” But from opening track, the aforementioned “Deceiver, I am” to closer “Touching the Void,” there’s countless moments that will make you double-take and bring back fond memories of everything that made Dead Heart in a Dead World and This Godless Endeavor absolute classics.

The first thing that really stands out here is indeed Wyatt Howell’s vocals – understandable given how much emphasis he seems to have out into paying homage to Warrel Dane’s distinct stylings – everything from tone to vocal patterns, to how he uses his voice to interplay with the rest of the band is really spot on, while still finding moments to also inject some Halford-esque falsettos and throaty growls into the mix. While the first two tracks of the albums are both fantastic in their own right, third track “As the World Burns” is where the whole band really pulls it all together. Howell layers some really haunting, melodic lines over angular, chugging guitars and a really effective, minimal synth background that gives everything a very kind of spacious and eerie feeling, all before launching into one of the band’s signature powerful, earworm hooks that really grab your attention with the vocals again leading the way. You can find some more Dane-isms on follow-up “Next To The Sun,” with Howell channeling some of the former’s tortured, strained crooning throughout the track that hooks itself under your skin with an unsettling, but altogether compelling attack the sticks with you. His best performance comes on final track “Touch The Void,” doing a fantastic job of switching back and forth between those almost apparitional melodies, and his more commanding bellow, but during the song’s chorus, he channels another haunting, really nice Layne Staley-esque tone that feels altogether at-home with the overall feel of the song and record.

That the vocals command so much of the listener’s attention is quite a feat, as the 3-guitar attack of Bryce R. VanHoosen, Sebastian Silva and Devon Miller is enough in and of itself to impress any listener. The overall tone is perfect – crunchy and super impactful when it needs to be in the band’s heavier sections, while carrying that familiar, phase-y tone on the cleaner sections of “Next To the Sun” and ballad “What Will Be” that transport you back to the 90s and early 2000s. Besides the obvious nod to Nevermore, the tone gives me a great nostalgic reminder of Sentenced‘s The Cold White Light, To/Die/For‘s Epilogue or Theatre of Tragedy‘s Aégis – very moody and very millenium-era Century Media Records-ish.  Take your pick of awesome riffs on thing – the ground-and-pound fury of “Resistance 2029,” or the super thrashy “Divine Fury” (a strong contender with “As the World Burns” for my favorite track) that brings more of the sounds found on their prior work to the forefront, but still delivers a heavy dose of Loomis to the mix (the 20 second stretch starting at 4:00 is a pulverizing thing of beauty, not to mention the amazing final solo). While the 3 guitars may not make themselves immediately necessary in a highly-produced studio setting, I’m willing to bet that it would pay off beautifully live – and I really can’t wait to hear it first-hand.

Though I’m sure the band themselves were intentional in their clear Nevermore adoration, I don’t mean to get the entire thing bogged down as a direct comparison between the two. That’s too reductive of everything the band offers on Decadence and Decay. I’ve just been so hungry for even a taste of something that reminded me this much of the legendary act, then when someone like Silver Talon comes along and not only does the sound justice, but absolutely knocks it out of the park, I just can’t help but get a little excited about it all… Okay, VERY excited about it. Christ, I didn’t even touch on the suberb rhythm work on display from drummer Michael Thompson and bassist Walter Hartzell (both are monsters), BUT WHATEVER – the point is, this is an excellent album that does so many things right – from the gorgeous album art, to the excellent production, to the stellar songwriting and performance – everything deserves your attention. Now excuse me while I ignore pretty much everything else that comes out for the next couple weeks and listen to this on repeat til my ears bleed.

If you are new to this, don’t go into this expecting your typical symphonic cleavage core with bombastic choruses (though there are plenty) and catchy, sugary hooks, (ie Amaranthe) this is far more complex and shufty with lots of twiddly, noodly leads and time changes. Nichola delivers oodles of backing keyboards that are not full-on ‘orchestral’ in the traditional sense, but layered, classically inspired, intricate arrangements, bolstered by Gruman’s Hellscore choir ( who have served on albums by Amorphis, Therion and Orpahned Land) and once again the end result should have these guy in the conversation for brightest newcomer on the female-fronted scene.

The 53-minute opera starts with the rousing instrumental “Overture for the Estranged” and jumps into the first track  “Break the Ice” and “Tantibus II”, both songs I would recommend to sort of exemplifies the band’s uniquely choppy but still catchy, epic sound. “Stranger” is another early standout, with a more moody, ballad-ish delivery before the sprawling  “Concrete Cages” delivers a stellar 7-minute progressive masterpiece, aided by Patty Gurdy (who has helped out on Alestorm and Stormseeker albums).

If you want more traditional, verse-chorus numbers, rousing “Huts” (with a cool children’s choir) and fierce “Gone” deliver more standard structures but still manage to break rank when it comes to female-fronted metal tropes. Even more so for the loungy, smokey “Under” or sweeping, penultimate number “Addicted”. “Mist” rounds things out with a nice little acoustic number that revisits some of the albums earlier moments, allowing Gruman’s voice to soothe you to sleep.

Once again, Gruman is stellar, from evocative sopranos to the occasional feral scream/growl, she’s got incredible range and power that would see her as a household name in Europe if she chose pop music or some other more popular outlet. The same should be for the band as a whole, as if they were Finnish, they would possibly be charting in Europe with this kind of talent and output.

Scardust’s debut album, Sands of Time was originally self released in 2017, but has been picked up by M Theory Audio (Into Eternity, The Absence, Hecate Enthroned) to be available for the first time outside of Israel, and I’m thankful, as this is one of the more ambitious female fronted metal bands I’ve heard in some time.

The album plays like a  dramatic metal opera akin to Therion, and isn’t your  usual female fronted verse/chorus, gothic sugary bluster. Guitarist Yadin Moyal clearly loves Dream Theater, as there is lots and lots of noodling and proggy, shifty time changes and bassist Yanai Avnet delivers lots of twiddly bass runs and solos (just listen to “Sands of Time: Hourglass”). Of course, the star of the show is vocalist Noa Gruman, who delivers all ranges from full on operatics to ethereal croons  and powerful choruses to more sultry tones. And the orchestration and choral arrangements of gifted young newcomer Alex Nicloa is top notch, with sweeping bombastic themes, that actually stray from the expected, cliched  Middle eastern tones.

The first half of the album is five tracks “Sands if Time”:, Overture, Eyes of Agony, Dials, Hourglass and Sands of Time. And its downright epic. Even if the 4 minute instrumental intro is a bit much, notably, “Dials” and the conclusion “Sands of Time” are simply enthralling and captivating in their shifty, shimmery compositions.

The rest of the album is just as good, as the addictive, totally uplifting “Arrrowhead” (that little Broadway choral break towards the end is to die for), except the track “Out of Strong Came Sweetness”, featuring Kobi Farhi of Orphaned Land is the album’s weakest cut and seems a bit shoe horned in to feature Farhi.  However, the next track “Queen of Insanity” delivers a surprisingly stern and beefy proggy opening stanza (including death metal growls and screams from someone) and continues to show Gruman’s skill as she delivers sheer, soaring vocal crescendos. “Blades ” comes close to a ballad of sorts, but still has a heavy choppy, noodly,  Dream Theater backbone, before closer “Gift Divine” renders a true prog ballad, I just wish the album closed an more energetic note rather than 2 slower convoluted but still engaging songs.

Still, while bands like Jinjer seem to get a lion’s share of the attention, and certainly no disrespect to them, but Scardust is hemorrhaging  talent at every level and should be getting more media attention all over as they are burgeoning stars.

Fast forward 20 years and 3 albums later, none of which I really heard, other than maybe a fleeting glimpse of 2004s Redimus, and half the original band is still at it after a 6 year layoff, and with album number 6, and still is surprisingly good and still sounds like Cradle of Filth, though missing Kennedy for a while now. Heck, even Sara Jezebel Diva makes an appearance!

While the Cradle of Filth rip off moniker is less relevant 20 years later due to the genre being far less fresh than is was back then, the fact is , it’s still a viable reference point all these years later. The fact it is, its still a pretty damned strong mimic, but still is darn solid stuff. Of course ,with Cradle of Filth undergoing a bit of a style shift over the years, one could argue Hecate Enthroned actually sound more like older Cradle of Filth than Cradle of Filth do now. Seriously- listen to third track “Temples that Breath” or sixth track “Enthrallment”, and tell me they could not be Cruelty and the Beast or Dusk and Her Embrace leftovers. All that is missing is Dani’s lyrical, sensual prose and prowess.

New vocalist Joe Stamps, the third vocalist in as many albums, has a Dani-ish screech and deep bellows, the keyboards of Pete White (who has been in the band since Redimus) are an epic, sweeping, majestic focal point, the guitars have bite and the bass throbs with aplomb. It’s all very unashamedly 90s sounding, almost like a black metal time capsule, which is not uprising considering half the lineup are responsible for the band’s first three albums which are actually from from the 90s, and this album hearkens right back to those, mostly the first two.

Other than the two aforementioned tracks, other standouts are the tracks where frequent  Cradle of Filth co conspirator Sara Jezebel Diva makes an appearance (she also helped out Hecate Enthroned on 2013 Virulent Rapture):  “Goddess of Dark Misfits”, “Silent Conversations With Distant Stars” and 9 minute closer “Erebus and Terror”. “Goddess….” being a more slow burning moody number, and Dive lends a nice sensual close to “Silent Conversations…..”. The massive closer, “Erebus and Terror”, is by far the bands longest, most ambitious  undertaking, and it shows, with  Diva’s alluring tones being the focus of the track early one, but the later stages dragging a bit.

Hecate Enthroned may never shake their Cradle of Filth clone tag, but they say mimicry is the highest form of flattery, and there is some serious flattery still going on, but frankly when its done this well, and with a true throwback feel, also imbuing the likes of early Old Man’s Child, Emperor and Dimmu Borgir,  I can’t help but enjoy the sound and style as I did 20 years ago.