Review: Ambrius – Effigies of Time

Style: Progressive Metal, Power Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Symphonic Metal (Mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Xaon, Moonshade
Review by: Christopher
Country: UK
Release date: 17 July, 2022

Ambrius was founded by former members of tech-death group Oakhaart and ex-thrash metallers Tempestora, and Effigies of Time, clocking in at thirty-five minutes, is their chunky debut EP. Clearly, these guys have a bit of experience under their belts, but here they turn their talents to a blend of melodeath and power metal with soaring vocals, symphonic accompaniment, and more than a little progressive experimentation.

Vocalist, Sam Shiers, has a venomous rasp to his cleans, but is given to unleashing a seemingly helium-fuelled falsetto. Fans of Michael Mills (Toehider, Ayreon, Ostura) or Rob Halford (Judas Priest) may enjoy such distinctive vocal acrobatics, but if your ears aren’t used to such high frequencies then their cartoonish absurdity will likely prove an obstacle to enjoyment. The utilisation of these highs is also somewhat lacklustre and one-note (forgive the pun); usually climbing a vertiginous incline to some ridiculous climactic peak or providing an alarming backing vocal, but with little variation. The harsh vocals provide a much-needed contrast and are satisfyingly full-throated. “Breathe” sees all three vocal styles overlaid, and the full range complementing and contrasting one another sees those highs at their best.

Outside of the fairly tried and true melodeath, symphonic and power metal tropes, Ambrius season their compositions with some more intriguing moments to demonstrate their creativity. “Self Reflection” features a dazzling guitar solo played to drums and strings alone (an intriguing combination) before segueing into an orchestral interlude, as well as some organ swells that are a welcome addition; the acoustic part on “The Unavoidable Path” is a genuine delight; and the brief piano sonata closing “Breathe” provides relief from the gallop of the riffs that came before.

However, these moments are just that: moments; fleeting splashes of colour amidst sonic monochrome. They don’t elevate the compositions so much as make you wish that entire songs could prove as genuinely engaging and original as their brief creative peaks. Ambrius are clearly a talented bunch—I can’t fault any of the members on their performances—, and they boldly attempt to break the mould, but said mould is only ever broken temporarily before they fall back into their routine. The symphonic accompaniment is a case in point: a flurry of strings, a thunder of brass, an epic orchestral build-up—all the requisite grandiosity without being as articulately composed as some of the genre’s best practitioners. Rather than being a comprehensive melding of the symphonic and metal, the orchestral parts are merely simple inflections upon the songs. The aforementioned highlights need to be interwoven more intricately into the overall composition.

Although I have issues with this release, Ambrius are nevertheless flexing an impressive set of muscles that should serve them well on future releases. Effigies of Time is an admirable way to kick-off any discography and while some of my criticisms, such as the falsetto vocals, are a simple matter of acquired taste, there are other more concrete issues that, though small, accumulate. My hope is that they take these obvious strengths and their curiosity for experimentation and centre them in future releases.

Recommended tracks: Self Reflection, The Unavoidable Path, The Pulse and Purpose
You may also like: Burned in Effigy, Spartan, Ostura
Final verdict: 6/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page

Label: Independent

Ambrius is:
– Sam Shiers (vocals)
– Jason Deakins (guitars)
– Michael Perks (bass)
– Alex Hawes (drums)