Four albums in and Swedish Metal band Metalite are in a confident enough place to release their first concept album. A futuristic Sci-fi adventure, the band are keen to point out that it incorporates all the musical elements the band have become known for over their previous three albums, and more besides. Metalite first showed the genesis of their Modern flavoured Melodic Power/Heavy Metal on debut “Heroes In Time”, but really found their feet with the introduction of new vocalist Erica Ohlsson on 2019’s excellent “Biomechanicals”. 2021 saw the band take their previous style and push it further into a more commercial place, which brings us up to the present day. The retrospection combined with evolution is spread over sixteen tracks here, so it’s certainly value for money, though with no song longer than 5 minutes, the album hurtles along at such a pace that it feels like a normal length album anyway.
Catchy, memorable choruses are still the focal point of each song, surrounded by melodic, heavy guitar riffs and those familiar splashes of synths and samples that the band have always utilised so well. The scene is set right from the off as the qualities just mentioned are emblazoned all over the opening title track, driven by powerful drums and bass. As the album progresses, the sci-fi theme works really well with Metalite’s sound, suiting the futuristic vibe in a similar way to Beast In Black’s “Dark Connection”, but with a more commercial approach and less Symphonic Power Metal bombasity. The band’s melodic Euro-rock tendencies are always on display, with most tracks being stand-alone individual songs, rather than overly linked by the conceptual theme. There’s some great little doses of impressive lead guitar throughout and there’s more infectious vocal lines than any album has a right to have, with Ohlsson delivering each one with the confidence and professionalism we’ve come to expect.
On the whole, this album does incorporate most of the styles the band have showcased previously, though maybe favouring their most recent output the most. The album is possibly missing a couple of real stand-out tracks, maybe because the album gels so well within itself. It has a such unified sound and similar feel throughout that nothing leaps out on initial listens. Some songs do come across a little similar to others on this album, possibly until you’ve lived with it for a good while and I am left feeling that “Expedition One” could have been four or five songs shorter and still had the same impact, with some of the album’s later songs nudging too far into commercial territory for me personally. But anyone who enjoyed the direction of Metalite’s previous album and enjoys the band at their most melodic will love this album too.
(7/10 Andy Barker)
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