Style: power metal, progressive metal (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Evergrey, Falconer, darker power metal
Review by: Dylan
Country: Tunisia
Release date: 26 April 2019
[EDITOR’S NOTE: This review was originally published in the April 2019 issue of The Progressive Subway.]
Reviewing albums can sometimes be a heartbreaking experience thanks to what I call the first track syndrome. There are a lot of bands that, either on purpose knowing the rest of the album isn’t as good, or by accident, put the very best track of the album at the beginning. Thanks to this, you get that first ‘’wow this is promising!’’ moment, only to be extremely disappointed by what the band offers throughout the rest of the album. Surprisingly, this Carthagods don’t follow this trope, but rather do the exact opposite. The first track is by far the worst thing offered on this album, it kind of slogs through and you don’t remember much of it by the time it ends but, after that, it very quickly picks up, and only goes upwards. At first I thought that it could’ve been me getting used to this particular style of power metal, as I’ll describe in a bit, but nope, every time I pressed play on this album, I found the first track to be weak, the second to be an improvement, and the third one to be the point where it really gets good. And I’d much rather have that experience, than one amazing opening track and 7 shitty ones!
As I’ve already stated, Carthagods aren’t your standard prog power band. There’s no over the top wankery, blasting double bass at 750bpm, and major key choruses. The Monster in Me takes a very subtle approach to power metal, and the best example is the vocals present on the album. The singer has clearly got an extensive vocal range, but he chooses to deliver most of his line on low register notes. His voice is gritty, subtle, and powerful (think of it as if Lemmy from Motorhead actually sung and was in a power metal band), and his delivery is always spot on. Grand, but kept to a serious, not over the top/showman style.
Another element I did not expect to like about Cathargods was their symphonic elements. Now yes, symphonic elements in power metal is indeed, quite trope-y. But to my surprise, they pull of orchestral production way better than some symphonic giants like Epica, Fleshgod Apocalypse, or even Nightwish. This is how I like an orchestra to sound in metal, present, but in the background. It helps add an extra layer of melody to each song, without them overpowering the guitars, drums, bass and vocals. Plus, the arrangements are very tasteful and used accordingly instead of them being present throughout the entire song.
This subtle approach to power metal makes the album stand out to many other options available on the genre. What you get here, is power metal written with thought, and seriousness without it resulting in a cheesy experience. They know when to pull out the double bass drumming, and when to keep it simple, when to throw in a guitar solo, and when to reserve themselves, when to give a soaring anthemic chorus, and when to hit you in the feels with beautiful heartfelt melodies. From heavy bangers like “The Devil’s Doll,” all the way to fantastic ballads like “The Rebirth,” The Monster in Me is an achievement in progressive power metal, and an album I’d recommend to anyone looking for something different in the gerne.
Recommended tracks: The Devil’s Doll, The Rebirth, Memories of Never Ending Pains
You may also like: Tanagra, Orpheus Blade
Final verdict: 9/10
Related links: Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page
Label: Metalville – Facebook | Official Website
Carthagods is:
– Mehdi Khema (vocals)
– Tarak Ben Sassi (guitars)
– Timo Somers (guitars)
– Yessine Timon Belghith (bass)
– Zack Ben Black (drums)
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