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New Music Reviews, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Progressive Rock, Progressive Metal, AOR, Alternative Rock, Alternative Metal
Recent Reviews
October 2018
- Greyhawk: Ride Out EP
- Midnite City: There Goes The Neighbourhood
- Guardians Of Time: Tearing Up The World
- Northward: Northward
- Orion's Reign: Scores Of War
- Sacral Rage: Beyond Celestial Echoes
- Tommy Justice: Rockturnal
- Road Warrior: Power
- Seventh Wonder: Tiara
- Nazareth: Tattooed On My Brain
- Impelliterri: The Nature Of The Beast
- God's Army: Demoncracy
- Hammer King: Poseidon Will Carry Us Home
- Hank Erix: Nothing But Trouble
- Lizzies: On Thin Ice
- Creye: Creye
- City Of Thieves: Beast Reality
- Gama Bomb: Speed Between The Lines
September 2018
- Dynazty: Firesign
- Brainstorm: Midnight Ghost
- Atlas: In Pursuit Of Memory
- Hypnos: Set Fire To The Sky
- Vandallus: Bad Disease
- Riverside: Wasteland
- Sage: Anno Domini 1573
- Soulhealer: Up From The Ashes
- Lioncage: Turn Back Time
- Inner Axis: We Live By Steel
- Weapon UK: Rising From The Ashes (2014/2018 Vinyl Reissue)
- Black Paisley: Perennials
- Treat: Tunguska
- Snakes In Paradise: Step Into The Light
- The Unity: Rise
- Last Pharaoh: The Mantle Of Spiders
- Black Majesty: Children Of The Abyss
- Uriah Heep: Living The Dream
Ashent: Inheritance
Ashent: Inheritance
Progressive Metal
3.5/5.0
With 2009's Deconstructive, Italian metal band Ashent attempted to break from European power metal mold with a more progressive sound. Largely, they succeeded, although it was sometimes uneven. This year's Inheritance builds upon that foundation as Ashent tries press farther into the realm of progressive metal.
Ashent: putting the big guy up front.
Again, generally, they have succeeded. Some of the success comes from a new lead vocalist, Titta Tani, who is a quite versatile singer and arranger. Additionally, Ashent have made their arrangements more technical, even complex, adding sequencers, synths, some sax inserts, orchestral parts, and choirs.
Sometimes, however, this attempt at invention and complexity blows back on them. Songs like Eve, Shipwrecked Affair, and Spider's Nest are so thick that it sounds like there are several songs overlapping one another in the same arrangement. Some of this may be due to the mix, but I doubt it. Conversely La Danzatrice Scalza has the complete opposite feeling. It's nearly perfect prog, interestingly, but not severely, technical, and simply delightful to the ears. Actually, Ashent seems to better when they're not trying to fill a song with a trick in their bag. Renaissance and the closing instrumental Labyrinthique are entertaining in their lack of complexity.
Yet, overall, Inheritance Inheritance continues to deepen the Ashent's exploration into more complex progressive metal, but sometimes with mixed results. Recommended.
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In Short
Overall, Inheritance continues to deepen the Ashent's exploration into more complex progressive metal, but sometimes with mixed results.
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People who know me, know that when I find a good thing, musically speaking, I stick with it. Such is the case of UK's Midnite City, formed some years ago by vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Rob Wylde (Tygertailz) ... [ Read More ]