Style: Melodic Death Metal, Melodic Metalcore (Mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Amaranthe, The Unguided, Brymir
Review by: Mathis
Country: Russia
Release date: 10 October, 2022
“Judge the book (album) by its cover”, my mind tells me before any soundwaves even reach my ears. This cover has a strong focal point, good visual hierarchy, and clean typography I can establish with only a glance. Endless evidence disproves the theory of “if good album cover, then good music,” but I was lucky this time. My stupid brain saw a pretty picture, and Sympuls-E delivered pretty sounds, and pretty sounds make my stupid brain happy!
Immensity is a wonderful marriage of melodeath and metalcore, and their lovechild, melodic metalcore, blesses Immensity with the best traits from each of its parents. Sympuls-E blends memorable metalcore choruses with soul-stirring stringed arrangements and zealous synth work. I love genre mixing/blending/hopping or whatever you’d like to call this kind of stuff, but I don’t want to paint the wrong picture of what this album is. The ratio of melodeath to metalcore is not 1:1; metalcore takes up a larger portion at around sixty-five percent, and melodic death metal fills the rest.
Don’t stop reading! If you don’t think thirty-five percent melodeath will tickle your fancy, then you should at least try “ The Pathfinder” and “One Way Journey”; these two tracks are the heaviest on the album, with blast beats, speedy riffs, and feel-good melodic synths. There are quite a few bangers besides these tracks, but they have less harsh vocals and more djenty chugs. “Light Years Away” has the best vocal work on the album with the clean vocals reaching high notes that weren’t explored anywhere else in the album, and “Infinity Around” penetrates my brain’s endorphin reserves: in a turn of events this “poppy” song ranks higher than most of the other tracks on the album.
After reading Andy’s Zemeth review a few months back, I’ve been perusing through the internet’s library of melodeath, and I prefer bands that lean heavier like The Devils of Loudun, Bleak Flesh, and Carrion Veil. However, Sympuls-E are a little too soft compared to those bands. Opting for an even split on the harsh and clean vocals would benefit them greatly. The clean vocals aren’t bad, but they’re monotone in most tracks, so I suggest adding more harsh vocals as well as a greater variety of styles. More low growls, more screeches, and fewer mid-range screams. Immensity is a good album until you start to get bored of it.
Immensity piqued my interest with its dramatic melodies flirting with my ears. I was further wooed by the catchy metalcore choruses. We dated, but after a while the spark started to fade, and I couldn’t help but feel like we were going through the motions. I still have feelings for Immensity, and they pop into my head and fill my heart with joy, but I know there are more profound lovers out there.
Recommended tracks: The Pathfinder, One Way Journey, Infinity Around
You may also like: Rise To Fall, Atlantis Chronicles
Final verdict: 6/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Label: Independent
Sympuls-E is:
– Anton Metlikin (vocals)
– Dmitry Kokarev (guitars)
– Ivan Anisov (guitars)
– Svyatoslav Krekov (drums)
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