A “musical journey through deep valleys, high hills and dark forests” is what’s promised. Well, Horizon Ignited are from Finland. Claimed to be the new pretenders in the melodic death metal scene, this is their second album release.
The problem with being a new wave of anything is that inevitably comparisons will be made. The sign of success is that the music is so absorbingly good that you forget about anything else. “Beyond Your reach” is powerful, purposeful, djenty and uplifting. It sounds like Hypocrisy. “Servant” doesn’t but has a lot more in common with the world of Tätgren than the faster output of Bodom, Norther, Kalmah and co. The melody is as solid as it gets. If you’d told me this was released in the 00s, I’d have believed you. The clean vocal-growl combo is in evidence on “Towards the Dying Land”. The melodic rhythm is pure Scandinavian. The clean vocals made it a bit lightweight for me but it’s got a nice chorus and guitar solo. Again I’m hearing a toned down version of In Flames, Scar Symmetry and Soilwork here. Heavy head-banging melody comes in the form of “End of the Line”. The pace is quickened on the lively “Guiding Light”, which shows great promise until the rather dreary clean chorus takes away the momentum. What was needed was something fresh which is initially here, but the band had other ideas and seem to prefer to interrupt the flow with that chorus. Shame. I liked the song but not the flow of it.
I sensed that “Reveries” was looking to be a power epic with its symphonic element. The expansive power of the instrumentals is good as ever and the song thumps along nicely but the cleaner elements once again don’t sound right. “Aching in the Wings” is a bit of a lighters-in-the-air job. Always solid in the drumming and instrumental department, it does not come across as epic as I believe it’s meant to be. Bring in the singer from Charon or Poisonblack and this might work. What I was hearing increasingly was a collection of dark, gothic-orientated songs played out in a melodic metal way. “Death Has Left Her Side” is one such, and is one with greater continuity and as a result impact and power. After a template beginning, “Fall Apart” heads into catchy melo death, interspersed with a classic heavy metal side, an ethereal instrumental chorus and an altogether feast of flavours – a good song. The album closes with “Eventide of Abysmal Grief”. The start is prog-orientated but we’re quickly back to the melodic metal style. Switching back and forth, it captures my frustration with parts of this album whereby the power and ferocity and melodic metal lines are watered down.
Horizon Ignited are presented to us as new kids on an existing block, and that’s right. This is a journey into the not-too-distant past of catchy melodic metal. My disappointment came where at the expense of flow and energy, the band mix in ingredients which break it up. “Dying Lands” is nothing exceptional and for me was weak in the sound balance without being adventurous. Undoubtedly it has elements of heaviness, melody and catchiness but overall I found it underwhelming.
(6/10 Andrew Doherty)
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