VISIGOTH - The Revenant King

January 28, 2015, 9 years ago

(Metal Blade)

Mark Gromen

Rating: 8.0

review heavy metal visigoth

VISIGOTH - The Revenant King

Long standing label head Brian Slagel must feel a bit of deja vu (I know I do!), what with all the young bands sporting a vintage sound, the noises he (and countless others, myself included) cut our metal teeth on, at least three decades ago. Enter Visigoth, who ply a brand of traditional metal laced with heavier undertones. Clean vocals with a rumbling, bass driven melody: imagine Falconer mixed with Grand Magus. Even the cover art is similar to an old Metal Blade signee, Cirth Ungol. Only two of the nine cuts are under six minutes long and several go well more than that, with “From The Arcane Mists Of Prophecy” winning the persistence battle at 9:44. As such, there a few false endings and tempo changes, within each.

No one trick pony, a lively, guitar solo-happy “Dungeon Master” picks up the pace, recalling Holy Grail. As the name implies “Mammoth Rider” plods, like the prehistoric beast, the drummer making liberal use of cymbals, his cement feet pushing the bass pedals deeper into the floor, with each note. Midway through, they dispense with the Magnus worship and opt for a stoner, groove, complete with guitar break, before returning to the simple, repetitive megaton delivery, to close things out. “Blood Sacrifice” begins with just two guitars, ala '70s Scorpions, eventually turning into a gallop, complete with neo-classical shred. Like a champion boxer, Visigoth alternate the running sequence between a series of speedy head jabs and powerful, lumbering body blows. Witness the monolithic “Iron (Butterfly?) Brotherhood”, with a cappella gang vocals. At 3:22, “Necropolis” is completed the quickest and with an almost pop sensibility (almost double-time, compared to its surroundings). “Vengeance” should easily translate to the stage, a sing-along chorus, if ever there was one. High pitched wail and similarly screaming guitars announce “Creature Of Desire”. Great stuff, regardless of when you were born!



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