Euro Metallers Serious Black return once more with their 7th studio album in 9 years of recording, the second of which to feature Nicola Mijić on vocals. A band who have had plenty of ups and downs in terms of reviews on their material, they have always been a group who have excelled at catchy and infectious melodic hooks and striving to find a sense of empowerment in their music when their releases have not been of the more conceptual nature in terms of storytelling. So let’s see if album number 7 is the lucky one or if this is a band still chasing the highs of their previous sound.
“Open Your Eyes” gives a promising start with its high powered and fast paced melodic number which sounds like exactly what you would expect from this band. The solid production sound on the guitar and drums gives a good backbone for the vocal work to take the forefront and hook you with the great delivery and the synth arrangements help round the sound out nicely. It’s got a punch to it but at the same time it still retains that European flavoured power metal edge. “We Are The Storm” has a heavier edge and more of a dramatic flair to its sound. The symphonic vibes in the intro give way to an energetic and upbeat pulse and the folk-like melodies in the chorus add a rather memorable hook to the track and the lead section has plenty of flair to round off what has been a solid follow up number.
“Silent Angel” has a big bass presence to its sound and it gives the track the extra kick it needs. Add this to the chugging guitars and the subtle synths, it creates a snarling track laced with attitude but still retains that melodic aspect. Soaring choruses with big sing along arrangements along with a steady drum beat let the chugging guitars open up a little more and the track works well. “Take Your Life” has a similar feel to the previous track but it adopts a more symphonic feel. Building with a bass and synth driven verse, it builds up to a classic empowering natured track and it’s very much ‘power metal by numbers’, catchy and melodic but nothing major. “Shields Of Glory” follows up and again it favours a subtle synth led opening leading to feelings that this is a ‘trick’ the band liked the sound of and have decided to cram it in wherever possible. It’s got some fantastic drum work with catchy snare fills and some great Hi-hat work but the approach of trying to go for a darker tone in the sound whilst angling for that empowering and uplifting power metal vibe doesn’t quite mesh. The big choruses pack a punch and the riffing is decent but it’s not exactly an electrifying track.
This leads us to the halfway point of the album and the expected ballad. “When I’m Gone” opens with a bright piano and warm synth arrangement before the vocals come in. As stated in my previous coverage of ‘Vengeance Is Mine’, Mijić’s vocals are powerful and an important piece of the band’s sound. Able to sound warm and emotional but able to retain some grit in the sound, this ballad is a solid piece of work with its spacious choruses allowing for massive sounds, melodic guitar lines and soaring sections. From here, we shift into the generic sounding “United” which is essentially an upbeat power metal number which will no doubt make for a great live sing along but it’s nothing which requires any major highlighting. This shifts us on to the titular track “Rise Of Akhenaton” which as you would guess by the artwork and name, a symphonic power metal fantasy inspired by Ancient Egypt. With the exotic Phrygian vibes to the composition it has that Middle-Eastern flair to the sound and it has a real cutting edge with the sharp guitar riff groove and stabbing synth blasts. Outside of that, well, it’s just typical Serious Black; solid vocals and plenty of catchy hooks in the delivery.
“Virtual Reality” begins the final run of the album and it’s a groove filled power metal stomper which has a slight 80’s metal kick. It’s one of the better tracks on the record in terms of its all round delivery and as it switches from mean grooves to massive soaring choruses, you can easily get caught up in it. “I Will Remember” has that synth and drum led intro but it actually works really well. A building feel with melodic vocals and gentle piano chords shifts to a steadily chugging metal gallop with some classic metal styled flair embellishments before it finally opens up for the pseudo-ballad chorus which admittedly works rather well. This leaves us with the final track of the release, “Metalized”, an all-out power metal stomper. Catchy melodic leads, fast paced NWOBHM inspired rhythm and corny lyrics worthy of Manowar praising metal in all its might. It’s a corny sing along with an irritatingly catchy hook about a metal gig and it works well to close the album.
After numerous listens to this, ‘Rise Of Akhenaton’ is a step backwards for Serious Black. It doesn’t quite have the punch of ‘Vengeance Is Mine’, nor does it have anything close to the quality of ‘Mirrorworld’, but it does show consistency. Serious Black know how to write a catchy number and the vocal work of Milić certainly helps make them a band to be noticed. This band is capable of better, but at least it isn’t a severe drop in quality.
(6.5/10 Fraggle)
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