Album
Type: Full Length
Date
Released: 27/01/2015
Label:
Metal Blade Records
‘The
Revenant King’ CD//DD//LP track listing:
1. The Revenant King
2. Dungeon Master
3. Mammoth Rider
4. Blood Sacrifice
5. Iron Brotherhood
6. Necropolis
7. Vengeance
8. Creature of Desire
9. From the Arcane Mists of Prophecy
2. Dungeon Master
3. Mammoth Rider
4. Blood Sacrifice
5. Iron Brotherhood
6. Necropolis
7. Vengeance
8. Creature of Desire
9. From the Arcane Mists of Prophecy
Visigoth
is:
Jake Rogers | vocals
Jamison Palmer | guitar
Leeland Campana | guitar
Matt Brotherton | bass
Mikey Tee | drums
Jamison Palmer | guitar
Leeland Campana | guitar
Matt Brotherton | bass
Mikey Tee | drums
Review:
Visigoth
is an American trad-metal band and have unleashed this opus on Metal Blade. The
art work is superb- old school and Cirith Ungol or even The Gates of
Slumber-esque. In fact, the cover really sums up what you are getting here.
This is sword and sorcery, warriors and wizards, keepers and keys, man and
war... you get the idea. Musically, then, this is somewhere between Iron
Maiden, Grand Magus, Manowar and 3 inches of Blood. The opening title track is
an 8 minute gallop through trad-metal territory. The riffs come thick and fast
and fleet of foot. ‘Dungeon Master’ follows this with vocals lower in pitch
than Dickinson but no less grandiose. This being an American band, dare I
suggest that they actually take this (too) seriously?!
Maybe
there is a playfulness lurking here- but for the most part these tales of
dungeons (if not quite dragons) seem deadly serious in delivery. Iron Maiden
have always had a slightly raised eyebrow when it comes to epic songs and
monsters wandering around the stage, while still performing with absolute
conviction, while Manowar have never
been less than adamantly straight faced (even in the face of ridicule and
contempt). There is nothing wrong with either approach, necessarily- you have
to say or play it like you mean it either way and all bands mentioned so far
most certainly do, including Visigoth. And why not? There are people out there
that long for simpler times, when honour, victory and glory were the only
worthwhile things to strive for. You know, when people had actual problems,
before the only warriors you heard about fought for social justice (whatever
that is) and dangerous foes were met in battle instead of non-dangerous soft
targets were sniped at from behind a keyboard. Visigoth play with conviction
and dexterity throughout. Hell, Manowar have made a thirty something career
(and counting) out of hymns to battle and glory so if you accept the conviction
that the songs are delivered with you will enjoy this.
‘Mammoth
Rider’ continues the blueprint while ‘Blood Sacrifice’ is catchy and engaging
in the extreme (it also contains the word “pentagram” Yes!). ‘Iron Brotherhood’
is ludicrous in all the right ways before ‘Necropoli’s delivers the kind of
track you would expect from the title. ‘Vengeance’’s tale of wandering a desolate
landscape following the destruction of one’s homestead and familial demise is
pure Conan-esque revelry while ‘Creature of Desire’ delivers yet more riffs and
leads, galloping on towards the final lengthy opus ‘From The Arcane Mists of
Prophecy’ with its epic conclusion.
The
instruments are superbly played, the vocals are grand and quasi-operatic and
suit the music well. There are many great riffs here and lots of time changes,
galloping rhythms and... well, heavy metal. For me, this does not quite reach
the heights of Grand Magus and it doesn’t have the sinister vibe of a band like
In Solitude (even if the cover might suggest otherwise) but what you get is
unashamed heavy metal of the type once revered and then ridiculed in the 80’s
going into the 90’s. Most bands don’t make records like this anymore, but then
again, most bands suck. So: All hail Visigoth. Keepers of the true metal flame!
Words by: Richard Maw
You
can pick up a copy here
For more
information:
