Germany’s Wheel made quite an impression on me in the last couple of years, their tape “Live at the Hammer of Doom 2013” was pretty special, and their last release was I think my first lockdown purchase, along with a t shirt. So when a new album comes along, I am more than interested. Although, I wasn’t expecting to be as blown away as I was!
Starting out with some amazingly epic music, definitely in the doom category, ‘At Night They Came Upon Us’ washes over you with immense power and style. Talking of style, the comparable acts I would go with (unsurprisingly!) is Solitude Aeturnus, Candlemass, Sorcerer (Swe) and possibly some fellow countrymen Doomshine. These guys know emotion and convey it very well indeed. The wizardry comes with Arkadius Kurek’s strong vocal line, much like Rob Lowe’s style and with a patented European flavour. The atmospherics, the feeling itself when you hear this tune is captivating. ‘When the Shadow takes you over’ continues the effortless doom majesty, sombre open chord structures fill the time between notes and stretch out the journey. When the time is right, the epic vocals hit the higher register and yet still retains a sense of beauty and angst when coming back down the range. ‘She Left in Silence’ has a Reverend Bizarre feel to the haunting vocal and song structure, albeit a touch faster than a direct comparison of that band. When the chorus kicks in, we come back to the character that you will have grown to know on the former tracks of the release. ‘Aeon of Darkness’ has a great intro and build up, much like some Solstice (UK) work, the hook that comes in near the 4 minute mark is simplicity in motion, pure poetic genius that captures another strand of atmosphere prior to a time change. Then ‘Hero of the Weak’ gets your feelings flowing, the energy portrayed here gives you many moments to sit and reflect at what you are hearing. Closing with ‘Daedalus’, Wheel simply blow away all the pretenders in this field, Wheel have it nailed. The arrangements, the execution, this album simply kicks it out of the park.
Similar thoughts are throughout the album, so I am kind of struggling to come up with something new to say. I am simply really enjoying this quality release. The question is, has the vinyl been mastered for its format? This collection of songs would really work well in that format of physical release if done correctly.
You get defined, stellar guitar work, the majority of the glee is found within the song arrangements themselves. It’s not often I get disappointed that an album has finished and I want to replay immediately. That is what I feel every time I spin ‘Preserved in Time’. It is a near perfect epic doom metal release filled with emotion, power and lyrical magic.
(9.5/10 Paul Maddison)
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