Inishmore hail from Baden, Switzerland and have been kicking around for quite some time in one form or another. The band existed round the turn of the 2000’s with three releases under their belt but they disbanded in 2009. Reforming again with a new line up, the band revisited the old material, bringing new life and light to it and thus, in 2011 they reformed again. Now, revitalised, they bring their latest project to life with “The Lemming Project”. Will this be a success or will they find themselves falling victim to the trope of the whole jumping off a cliff trick associated with the furry creatures and the annoyingly addictive and iconic video game?
Despite the press kit which came with this album, Inishmore aren’t what I would typically call Power Metal. The group may have some of the core elements like the hard hitting melodies and tight rhythms, but overall this band leans in a more traditional/Euro metal direction, blending elements of power, classic, NWOBHM and thrash in their sound.
The opening track, “Cup Of Lies” sums this approach up. With the pseudo heavy metal and thrash feel in the intro, it is ripe with melodic leads and fills, solid rhythm and fantastic vocals which carry a melody of their own, not to mention the strong rhythmic hooks in the chorus and that blistering solo.
Keeping this up, “Merciful” has a real crunchy metallic groove to it. The emphasis on the low end really adds some depth to the track as the distorted guitars and bass create a hard hitting wall of sound when heavy, whilst the crisp ringing tones in the clean sections roll out so smoothly. Subtle backing synth and piano lines add that extra edge, along with the vocal work which is soft in the verse and a little more rough round the edges in the distorted parts. It is a real solid track which sinks it’s hook into you and keeps you on its line from start to finish.
From here, it plays out the same pretty much. “Better Off dead” is more power metal friendly, with a sound somewhat similar to early 2000’s Sonata Arctica whilst the folkish feel to “Finally A Love Song” has a fantastic energy running through it, compelling you to dance along and enjoy it like it were Korpiklaani or Fintroll but with a clearer melodic side.
“Part Of The Game” brings the NWOBHM influences to the front with a real hard hitting, fast paced intro laced with melodic riffs. Machine gun burst chugs in the verse and switching between male and female vocals, it sounds like a power metal meets early Iron Maiden effort with the catchy hooks and raw edge to it. “Manifest” has a riff which sounds vaguely similar to ‘Holy Diver’ and much like Dio, it’s got great vocal delivery and some real punchy hooks to it, along with a blistering solo and sweet sounding clean sequence which follows, leading to a real hypnotic section round the mid-point.
“Eternal Wanderer” has that classic metal feel to it along the lines of Helloween and you can just tell it is made for the live setting with its epic building intro, definitely single material if there ever was any. Great riffs, a solid bassline, spot on vocals and plenty of scope for call and response sections with the crowd, especially the pre chorus… And then that chorus itself with the epic choir like synth augmentation,. It’s a cracker!
“Red Lake” has a sorrowful piano melody over some hard hitting distortion along with some clever synth use to create one hell of an atmosphere. Harmony vocals, hard hitting riffs and a real kick, it’s another great track on what has proved to be a solid album so far. Penultimate track, “Where Lonely Shadows Walk” has a real sorrowful edge to it. The beautiful sounding vocals over the haunting clean guitar and string lines in the beginning are captivating and the rest of the band joins in, it gets a fuller sound to it. The riffs hit hard but do little to overpower the synth and string elements which helps make this a solid effort, especially with the string lead sections adding an edge to the track which makes it shine out.
Title track, “The Lemming Project” closes the album (Officially, the copy I have contains a bonus track!) and it is a near 13 minute epic. Shifting through ballad like, thought invoking sections to hard hitting, melodic metal with soaring solos and some great vocal switching sections, it has a real depth to it. Lyrically, it really resonates with the futility of our actions at times and the music helps shift the mood and the feel, but the downside is that as epic as this tack is, it does drag on a little at times, but it is a fitting way to draw the curtain on this album. The bonus track is an acoustic rendition of “Where Lonely Shadows Walk” and it’s basically stripped of the synth, bass and drums, giving it a haunting edge and it’s worth checking it out and then listening to the album version too.
Overall, this is a decent recording. What it lacks in the expected, typical Power Metal, it more than makes up for it with a real classic Euro metal feel. “The Lemming Project” is a solid release with some great lyrical concepts, riffs and melodies, but the downside is that sometimes it does feel a little samey… Still, it’s definitely worth a listen.
(7/10 Fraggle)
https://www.facebook.com/inishmoreband
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv3RTkKZY5k
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