This is an album I have been waiting for what seems like ages. There’s two or three bands I have found from their infancy from the UK, Amulet and Dark Forest namely, Seven Sisters are another band who literally blew me away when I first heard their demos. After a few live shows, this album was going to have to hit hard to love up to my expectations. It does not disappoint. First of all, they couldn’t have found a better label to release it on, secondly, British metal really has some longevity, and this young hand take things a touch further than your standard NWOBHM tribute. There’s so much more to offer here.
For a young band, their emphasis on melody is really key. With Kyle taking over on vocals as well as continuing with guitar, I admit I was apprehensive. After some live shows, well that just proved that I was thinking total bollocks and on this album, wow, there’s some good stuff and some very pleasant surprises. My one single critique of the release is that the opening track ‘Destiny’s Calling’ perhaps should have been put towards the middle of the release, as I feel it doesn’t demonstrate the bands full potential, fast as it is, it loses some power…I worry as with this fickle mp3 scene it may deter listeners…well…don’t skip, play the album fully as it is intended I implore you! Aha, then ‘Highways of the Night’. This is one of the many money shots! NWOBHM riffing, tight twin guitars and some killer solos greet you, after the first listen, I bet you can sing along with this, it’s so catchy. Then the metal majesty further develops with ‘The Silk Road’. The emotion oozing from the guitar work, both light and heavy, the tone just does something to your hearing, almost like a siren call, beckoning you into your watery demise. It’s a good place to be, I got a little transfixed by some of the music here, but you’ll still be rocking out when it is needed, what a tune.
Further highlights (and no I am not going track by track although I could in all honesty) is ‘Seven Sisters’. Apart from not being about a London Underground destination (lol), it’s more epic than what people claim to be epic. A soft intro, stokes the fire, then the guitars kick in and the journey begins. When I mentioned earlier about the band having more to offer, I’ll direct you to ‘Commanded by Fear’. Musically, it’s a no brainer, what I really find out of the box for a young metal band is towards the end of the track where they engage in vocal rounds….not that common, and here it is perfectly executed. ‘Cast to the Stars’ is a fitting end, although I don’t want this to end. I must have played this constantly over 25 times in recent weeks, it’s a great release, and each time I listen, I find something different, something to further my appreciation of this creation.
The digital artwork I am seeing here also looks fresh, it’ll look great across a couple of formats as it is planned to be released upon. This is two albums I have spoken very highly of this year, from bands that I have watched develop. It kind of makes you feel proud to be part of the journey, it certainly does me. Seven Sisters self-titled album is a gem, it’s a true masterclass honing an expansive amount of influences, but their trick is to keep it individual to themselves. The band used to display a banner over their monitors at live shows, “shit band, No Fans”, there’s no way that applies no matter how tongue in cheek I know it’s meant to be when you hear this album.
This is British metal with a heavy NWOBHM influence, containing guitar raging duels and vocal melodies that encapsulate your imagination.
(9.5/10 Paul Maddison)
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