Written and recorded throughout the numerous lockdowns in Greece, Rotting Christ frontman Sakis Tolis’ unleashes his debut solo album. The solo ethos is present throughout the record as Sakis performs everything except drums, which is left to acclaimed producer/mixer and ex-Nightrage/ex-Septicflesh drummer Fotis Bernardo, who also mixes this record. The tracks here draw heavily from the more Gothic, rhythmic, chanting aspects of the Rotting Christ canon, using doom as a basis for yet more anti-religious, lyrical content, just listen to The Silence to understand what I mean. Tolis has a very definitive voice both when he belts out that big crooning clean and snarls with the harsh voice on the title track, but it really impresses on My Salvation which is an anthemic number that moves into the realms of Septicflesh and Fear Factory, due to its grinding industrial tinge and use of clean guitars.
The songs have been all well composed, making the album feel as epic as those most recent Rotting Christ records, the riffs especially on
The Dawn Of The New Age getting the head grooving with thrashy sound in direct contrast to the doomy
Ad Astra, though both feature some excellent guitar playing. The more dramatic style featured here comes from the narration of Andrew Lilles & Stratis Steele, but essentially
Among The Fires Of Hell is a Rotting Christ record with the viciousness toned down slightly and the classic metal influences dialled up, on
We…The Fallen Angels especially. At a time when there is a lot of pandemic projects coming out,
Among The Fires Of Hell, is one of the better offerings, appealing to Rotting Christ fans and beyond. 8/10
Stray Gods - Storm The Walls (ROAR! Rock Of Angels)
It just seems now that Bob Katsionis can achieve anything he puts his mind too. Own studio/record label? Check. Reinvigorate some classic Greek metal bands? Check. Create the soundtrack to a video game that doesn't exist? Check. Become Iron Maiden? Well this last one is very much checked with the debut album from Stray Gods. Storm The Walls, was written during the Covid downtime, as a homage to Iron Maiden, the songs have all been deliberately styled to sound like the British metal legends, taking influence from their entire discography rather than just those first few NWOBHM classics that so many other bands throw themselves into.
Katsionis himself discovered the band in 1988 so he arrived at their most varied time musically. Stray Gods then is both a tribute but also a band creating their own music just in a style that will be familiar. Not bad considering the album stemmed from Bob testing a new bass guitar and arranging the songs in his studio. However once Bob had recorded and played all the guitars, with the exception of a few solos from Monuments Dan Baune, he had to actually fill a band, so invited Gus Macricostas from Biff Byfords band on bass, Thanos Pappas of Greeces only Bruce Dickinson tribute band on drums and behind the mic Artur Almeida who fronts Portuguese band Attik Demons and vocally is a better Bruce than Bruce now.
Storm The Walls is a great heavy metal record, with the old school gallops of the 80' on tracks such as the opening two tracks The Seventh Day and Black Horses, the one feeling like it could be on Seventh Son Of Seventh Son, which I guess is the idea, this kicking off the record with that explosive Maiden style, Black Horses is a bit more proggy keeping things in the Somewhere In Time era. But also there's some 90's/2000's style on the dramatic, Love In The Dark and the epic Silver Moon. Stray Gods was put together in the absence of an Iron Maiden album, though how were we all know now that Senjutsu was being recorded in secret.
Still for me Storm The Walls is a more entertaining Iron Maiden album than the bands past two releases, hell it's more entertaining than many of the bands that copy Maiden. Fans of that classic Iron Maiden sound will love Stray Gods, it's a loving homage that uses the style of the band to make great metal music. You can be cynical about it, but you know what? Life's to short, things are too shit, just throw the horns! Up The Strays! 9/10
Playgrounded - The Death Of Death (Pelagic Records)
The Death Of Death is the second album from Greek band (though based in The Netherlands) Playgrounded. All of the members are extremely accomplished musicians and people in general with Main composer and producer Orestis Zafeirou (synths/production)a graduate from the Institute of Sonology of the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague also working in a synth factory. Vocalist and co-producer Stavros Markonis is a composer from the Amsterdam conservatoire, drummer Giorgos Pouliasis is a graduate from the Rotterdam Conservatoire and Odysseas Zafeiriou (bass) and Michael Kotsirakis (guitar) are both computer engineers.
So The Death Of Death is clever people playing clever music. Because of the talent behind it, I will say it’s not an easy album to get into, it need several listens both through headphones and speakers to be able to pick up every nuance in the music, but also feel the full primal force of it as well. It sounds Nordic/Scandi, nodding to bands such as Leprous, Vola and Katatonia, the deep resonant vocals bursting through a wall of heavy, introspective musical backing. The rhythmic, anthemic first track The Swan gives pace and establishes Playgrounded’s new found comfort in their position as a band, the Nordic/Scandi influence is biggest here, layers of shimmering oscillating synths are paired with expansive open drum patterns and heavy riffs that wash in and out.
From here things get more gloomy and melancholic as we move into the brooding, throbbing industrial edge of Rituals, here the comparisons are drawn to bands such as Tool, there’s huge palm muted bass riffs hooking you into its dark presence, while the guitars follow suit. The songs here feel composed, constructed, built from the synth/samples, layers of audio grafted on top of one another to create a whole. A little like field recording specialists such as Steve Rodden.
There’s not a lot of Grateful Dead jamming going on but this engineered method really suits the artificial, manufactured style of Playgrounded’s musical intent, it’s the soundtrack to a computer unraveling itself in some depressing 70’s sci-fi. There’s an unnatural darkness that imbues the record, the title track, a thrilling, but unnerving mix of System Of Down and Depeche Mode, the focus here on distorted, yet atmospheric guitar playing in unison with the repeating synths.
This mixture of the synth/guitar runs with the low rhythm pulse reminds me of Riverside in terms of style, there’s also touches of NIN, Gary Numan and acts such as Cabaret Voltaire strewn across the six tracks. A unique, beguiling listen, The Death Of Death deserves your time and will worm it’s way into your head-space. 9/10
Steelwitch – The Witch Is Back (Cult Metal Classics Records)
Steelwitch, not to be confused with Czech band Steel Witch, are a heavy/power metal band from Athens. Basically a one-man project with a vocalist ‘Ungod’ is responsible for all of the instruments while Giorgos Papagiannakis takes the vocals. Though musically from the same place as Stray Gods, Steelwitch are a bit grimier, rougher and rawer than Bob Katsionis’ classic metal band (all of them in fact).
Steelwitch are inspired by bands such as Angel Witch and Mercyful Fate, though Maiden creeps in too. cranking through 49 minutes of leather studded heavy metal, ready to injure your neck. The Witch Is Back, is their full length debut, their modus operandi, an eight song jaunt through speed metal riffs and histrionic vocals (that are also a bit Dickinsonesque), wrapped up in some analogue/D.I.Y production so it sounds like a cassette coming out of your beat up car as you drive to the bands show full studded gauntlets and all.
There’s pretty much every trope from 80’s metal you’d care to think about, motorcycle sounds, demonic chants, tinny drums and lots of shredding. It’s not ground breaking but will get the head nodding if the trad metal style, gets your heartbeat going. The Witch Is Back, but the influences never went away. 7/10