Review Summary: Adventure, Fortune, and Disdain on the High Seas
Italian blackened symphonic metal band Stormlord continues the band's super solid track record with another great blackened epic symphonic metal album:
Mare Nostrum. The band has gradually changed from thrashy metal with strings as an added layer to the strings being a more integral part of the music. More and more the band has utilized them for key melodies and often they are the most interesting part at any one time. Despite this being a barrier to some listeners they really don't come off as gimmicky. They superbly create the atmosphere and rarely feel unwarranted. They are also now used more often for natural sounding long notes and swells that actually sound like it could be a small orchestra as opposed to quick rhythmic melodies like the band
Equilibrium would do. Even then these long symphonic notes still make pleasing melodies and pick up speed when appropriate. They are one of the main attractions here and are center stage throughout most of the playtime.
With this and their newest album the band has gone to a more “ocean adventure” type of concept, and it really seems to have breathed some new life into the band. Each song seems like its own voyage with its own results, emotions, and climate. There are the complex opening and closing tracks, the triumphant
Neon Karma and
The Wind's Shall Scream My Name, the exotic
Legacy of the Snake and
Scorn, the mysterious and thrash heavy
Emet and
Dimension:Hate, and an acoustic track that has as much vibrance and energy as the heavier tracks. As far as vocals go the ever so effective black metal mid and high shriek mix with deep and mid growls, silky smooth low cleans, and some operatic female vocals to keep it always fresh. There are even some more surprising sounds thrown in from time to time. By the end of the album one really gets the sense they have gone places. It feels sincere; much more like what sailors or pirates would sound like (if they were a metal band on the side) than a band like
Alestorm.
Their deeper focus on the epic side of things creates more drawn out parts and less immediate results than their older albums. There is little flash here. Guitar melodies are abound, but no solos. The riffs are catchy and at points crushing, but usually they are laying down chords rather than riffing. Drums are incredibly solid and a lesson in “less is more”. Instead of instrumental wizardary, Stormlord let's their amalgamation and expansive dynamic writing subtly impress on perhaps a deeper but less immediate level. Honestly I was underwhelmed the first time I heard this, but the second time I knew what I was getting into and it seemed like a whole different album. It feels modest but grand.
With
Mare Nostrum Stormlord took a different approach and effectively avoided a letdown after the terrific
The Gorgon Cult. They have proven once again that they are severely underrated in symphonic metal. It is bright and hopeful sounding for black metal, fitting into the genre because of the scream tone, production, and playing styles instead of the bleakness often associates with the genre. Recommended to any metal fan looking to take a subtly incredibly epic symphonic journey. Their newest album is also recommended.
