Everywhere you look, bands are looking to recapture that classic heavy metal sound. While many look to the originators of heavy in Ozzy-era Black Sabbath, still others find their muse in bands like Mercyful Fate and Iron Maiden. So it was only a matter of time until a band took a page from the Ronnie James Dio hymnal and apply a more theatrical and glorious edge to their sound. The question is, how would they do it? Would they apply the same old, silly tropes of power metal? Or would they take a different course and draw on Dio's Heaven and Hell-era work (with perhaps a touch of Candlemass in there as well)? Thankfully, Below's new album clearly does the latter and gives the listener a solid slab of dark, brooding metal.
Though their sound is an old one, there is definitely an appetite among metal listeners for an album like Across the Dark River. With the endless array of "-core" genres and dizzying waves of technicality now over-saturating the market, songs like "Trapped Under Ground" and "Ghost of a Shepherd" are a breath of classic fresh air. And I don't mean to just praise the band for all of this, they have a mighty sound all their own: heavy riffs, cool MEMORABLE guitar solos, the fist-pumping rhythms and theatrical vocals.
If I could give the band a medal, I'd hand it to Zeb for making me like his vocal style, one I'm extremely picky about. His voice reminds me of a little-known power metal band from Canada called Betrayer whose EP in 2005 I really liked (anyone remember them?!). And man that album art is so cool, it almost looks like something out of Diablo or Heroes of Might and Magic.
Anyway, if you're looking for some dark and heavy classic metal with good songwriting, you'll find it Across the Dark River.
8/10
Favorite Songs: "Trapped Under Ground", "Ghost of a Shepherd"
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szIm9PpGO7k[/youtube]
