Style: thrash/USPM (clean vocals)
Review by: Sam
Country: Greece
Release date: 19-10-2018
NOTE: This album was originally included in the October 2018 issue of The Progressive Subway
If you read our about page, you might know that my habit of thoroughly searching the metal-archives originally started out in a craving for modern tech/prog thrash. It’s like the genre just completely died out halfway the 90s. It’s no wonder Vektor became as huge as they did when they blew some new life into the genre again with their epic blackened sound. Now I did manage to find some good stuff in Cautiva and the Japanese underground legends Gargoyle, but that was so far in between I gave up on it after a while. Unsurprisingly, I haven’t found anything good in this diluted genre with this blog 9 editions in a row either. However, that ends today! I was shown this album by a friend on the Discord. This album has already picked up some steam in metal circles, but in prog circles this album seem to remain unknown, and hence my inclusion.
This album is really, really, really competent. In fact I’d go so far to say it’s a stroke of genius. It’s fast, furious, varied and completely insane. It starts with a perfectly sinister intro with machine noises, and when that’s over the insanity starts. Immediately you’re greeted with an old-school weird-ass falsetto vocalist that pierces your ear (but in a good way). He’s like a combination of James Rivera of Helstar, Buddy Lackey of Psychotic Waltz and King Diamond. His vocal melodies are weird like the former two and has the weird but magical falsetto of the latter.
Following that is just a whirlwind of riffs, riffs, solos and more riffs. Exactly the way it should be with thrash. Sacral Rage blends thrash riffs with USPM-style melodic stylings and Watchtower-esque technical wizardry in a phenomenal fashion. One quickly loses count of all the amazing riffs in this album. The way they follow up riff after riff reminds me of Helstar, but then with actually memorable songwriting and a good vocalist. And Jesus Christ they can shred as well, see Eternal Solstice at 3:17. This is a very guitar-focused album. The rhythms guys are no slouches either, but they play in mostly a supportive role. It’s not like they need to do more anyway. If the drummer went ham with his fills the soundscape would just become cluttered. They provide a great backbone for all the guitar wizardry.
What above all else makes this album so amazing though, is the songwriting. Like I said this is as if Helstar actually knew how to write proper songs instead of just sprouting riffs for 50 minutes without much cohesion. Their songs are generally of medium length, but they all have distinct personalities and something memorable about them. And it’s not just a pure riff-barrage either as there are plenty of aptly placed softer sections to provide some breathing room. And at the end there’s a 14 minute epic and lo and behold does it kick ass. I never thought I’d see a thrash song over 10 minutes that isn’t written by Mekong Delta (see: Dances of Death) being actually good, but these guys manage to pull it off. Sacral Rage pull out their entire arsenal to create one of the best prog thrash songs you’ll ever hear.
This album is an absolutely phenomenal prog thrash release. It stays true to the old-school sound and influences are clear, but they have more than enough songwriting chops and freshness to make up for it. I recommend this to anyone who’s even remotely interested in prog thrash. Beyond Celestial Echoes is a modern masterpiece in a genre that has all but died out.
Recommended tracks: everything lol Vaguely Decoded, The Glass
Recommended for fans of: Watchtower, Voivod, Helstar, prog thrash in general
Final verdict: 9.5/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Metal-Archives page
Label: Cruz Del Sur music – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook
Sacral Rage is:
– Dimitris K. (vocals)
– Marios P. (guitars)
– Vangelis F. (drums)
– Chris Z. (bass)
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