Style: power metal, progressive metal (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Angra, Rhapsody, Theocracy
Review by: Sam
Country: California, United States
Release date: 27 October, 2023
Despite being a huge fan of power metal and all things goofy, I’ve never been big on gimmick bands. Even the better ones like Gloryhammer or Powerwolf who at least take the music aspect seriously don’t fully sit right with me. In my mind, your music should always be the reason why people remember you, not the costumes you’re wearing. Today we’re showcasing Immortal Guardian, a progressive power metal band whose main songwriter plays guitar and keyboard simultaneously. Fortunately for my grumpy ass, it’s more supplementary than part of their core aesthetic. This is a serious band writing serious songs and from my ivory Subway conductor’s seat I’m going to give serious critiques like the qualified reviewer I am. I also reviewed their debut five years ago but honestly, I don’t remember much about it besides plastic production and my writing was garbage back then anyway, so consider this a fresh perspective.
Progressive power metal can be a misleading term, it often alludes to bands doing Dream Theater worship with faster riffs and slightly more theatrical vocals: think Circus Maximus, Pagan’s Mind, Anubis Gate, and so on. Immortal Guardian though is power metal through and through, and they use progressive elements to accentuate it. You’ve got your galloping riffs, soaring choruses, neoclassical soloing, and a healthy dose of double kick abuse in the drumming department. The guitars aren’t as thick as I’d like them to be, but in return the bass gets more spotlight than usual in this genre, so I’m ok with it. Immortal Guardian are particularly good at the soaring choruses aspect, with distinct, catchy chorus melodies in every song. There’s the typical “fast power metal song” style chorus of “Echoes”, the grandiosity of the title track, the anthemic “Divided We Fall”, and more. They know what works within the genre and stick to it.
But that’s also where the problems start. As a power metal record, Unite and Conquer does fairly well, but as a prog metal record, it’s lacking. Most of the time Immortal Guardian will stick exactly to what is expected. Their melodies stick around, but rather because they use a tried and true formula than that I’m genuinely moved (if I hear one more harmonized “woah” I’m seriously gonna kill someone, probably Andy for his continuous neglect of adding his review albums to our worksheet). Some compositional experimentation is there – Latin sections, occasional drop-offs for an emotional piano-driven melody,, and other miscellaneous things I’ll get into later, all of which can provide interesting changes of pace – but it’s typically not tied in smoothly, and the Latin parts smell like Angra rip-offs. Often they’ll throw in a cool idea, but it appears only once in the song and is not built upon, making the addition feel pointless.
Take “Echoes”, it starts like a prime Angra song with melodic shred transitioning into a bouncy Latin rhythm, then goes into “fast power metal song” mode, halts the tempo for epic melodies, goes back into fast playing for the bridge, and then after the final chorus it tries to give a grandiose finish by suddenly dropping off for piano and then hitting the epic melodies again in choir mode over a chugging riff. Each individual element of the song is great, but in its entirety it’s a disjointed mess. “Roots Run Deep” similarly starts with poignant baritone vocals over somber piano keys, but once the power metal kicks in it’s as if it never happened. “Divided We Fall” is a power ballad that makes the odd choice to go for shrill Rob Halford-like shouts where typically you’d hear gentle melodic vocal lines. I get what they’re going for, but I’d have preferred to hear more of Carlos Zema’s wonderful melodic voice. The compositions are better in the second half of the album though. “Lost in the Darkness”, the title track, and “Rise of the Phoenix” are great, dynamic power metal tunes, and “Southern Rain” and “Un Dia a la Vez” are lovely folky reprieves from the genre’s inherent maximality, so the album ends on a positive note.
But experimentation aside, what’s consistently great about this album is the drumming. Justin Piedimonte regularly lets loose at unexpected moments with sudden double bass bursts or insane fills and injects life into whatever’s going on at the moment – good or bad. He consistently steals the show. Even during the guitar/keyboard unison solos (which are done by one person in real time I remind you) it’s really the way he dictates the tempo that makes the sections stand out. Speaking of guitars, Gabriel Guardiola’s riff game is pretty astute, doing both the power metal riffage and the spidery prog stuff well. He’s not one to go outside the box much (particularly the Angra and Rhapsody box), but he knows his chops so it’s entertaining either way. Of course the unison solos are insane technically, but in all honesty I find his pure guitar solos more compelling because he’s not just doing diddly diddly runs and lays more melody into it.
I’ve been quite cynical in this review, but don’t get me wrong, Unite and Conquer is an entertaining album. At its core, it’s a solid collection of technically intricate, yet catchy power metal tunes with a bunch of curveballs thrown your way. Yeah it’s a bit generic and haphazard at times, but it’s good enough to satisfy your need for proggy power metal for a couple of weeks. See it as a solid warm-up for the new Angra record coming out next week.
Recommended tracks: Perfect Person, Southern Rain, Unite and Conquer
You may also like: Mortanius, Novareign, Noveria
Final verdict: 6/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Metal-Archives page
Label: M-Theory Audio – Facebook | Official Website
Immortal Guardian is:
– Carlos Zema (vocals)
– Gabriel Guardiola (guitars/keyboards simultaneously)
– Joshua Lopez (bass)
– Justin Piedimonte (drums)
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