Melodic Death Metal

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Shadecrown - 0 (2025)

    cover

    Since it seems to be a requirement in Finland to play in a Metal band, there are countless excellent bands in that country. While we all know the big names, it is always interesting to find outfits like Shadecrown, which have a killer and very refined sound and yet they are not as big as others. With “0”, the band delivers over 44 minutes of highly melancholic, expertly crafted Melodic Death/Doom Metal, similar to outfits like Before the Dawn, Swallow the Sun, Insomnium, Hanging Garden, but with their own particular style.

    Opening with the high-octane “The Art of Grieving”, the band sets a very melancholic and melodic mood with crafty riffs, engaging atmospherics and a solid blend of weeping lead guitars alongside your traditional growls. There are definitely some similarities to bands like Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum, but the band managed to carve out their own signature style while unleashing excellent head-banging inducing pieces like “In A State of Agony”, “Fragile Chapters” and “Gone”.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Allegaeon - The Ossuary Lens (2025)

    cover

    Continuing their crushing onslaught to the top levels of Technical/Melodic Death Metal, today we have Allegaeon and their latest opus “The Ossuary Lens”. Featuring ten tracks and nearly 45 minutes of blistering music, this release further refines the band’s high-octane sound, while infusing some new elements and marks the return of their original vocalist Ezra Haynes. With a focus on creating engaging songs and delivering maximum brutality, the band manages to unleash their finest release to date.

    After the atmospheric “Refraction”, the band instantly means business with the punishing “Chaos Theory”. This track sets a very hectic pace thanks to its insane riffing and crafty drumming. The band has never focused on creating complex tracks just for the sake of it, like others in the genre, but rather deliver a perfectly balanced mixture of musicianship, melody and brutality, as “Driftwood”, “Dies Irae” and “The Swarm” showcase.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Arch Enemy - Blood Dynasty (2025)

    cover

    As one of the most eagerly awaited releases of 2025, today we have Arch Enemy and their latest opus “Blood Dynasty”. With a long storied career, the stakes are always high when big bands release new albums, and luckily for all, this release delivers in every single aspect. Riding their explosive and highly melodic sound, Alissa White-Gluz and company deliver eleven tracks and over 44 minutes of ravaging music.

    Opening with the ripping “Dream Stealer”, we are treated to a prime Arch Enemy song with blistering guitar work, Alissa’s growls, and tons of catchiness. The band’s musicianship can never be questioned, and as tracks like “Illuminate the Path”, “March of Miscreants”, and “A Million Suns

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    The Halo Effect - March of the Unheard (2025)

    cover

    Unleashing an earlier contender for album of the year, The Halo Effect returns with the excellent “March of the Unheard”. Continuing their In Flames-meets-Dark Tranquillity explorations of the Gothenburg Melodic Death Metal sound, the band delivers twelve tracks and over 42-minutes of superbly catchy and engaging music with a certain softer tone to keep things more mellow and accessible.

    Opening with the bombastic “Conspire to Deceive”, we get the signature riffing of Niclas Engelin and Jesper Strömblad alongside Mikael Stanne’s snarls in a very catchy and engaging package. As the album progresses with “Detonate”, “Our Channel to the Darkness”, and “Cruel Perception”, the band showcases their signature sound while inserting some versatility with different tempos, dramatic guitar leads and an overall mastery of melody and pace.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Wolfheart - Draconian Darkness (2024)

    cover

    Tuomas Saukkonen continues to be one of the most busy persons in Metal, dropping a new Wolfheart release in 2024. With “Draconian Darkness”, the band continues its illustrious career delivering nine tracks and over 40-minutes of catchy and engaging Melodic Death Metal. Featuring the band’s signature sound plus a few tweaks, this release perfectly balances aggression with melody, creating epic headbanging moments in its wake.

    Opening with “Ancient Cold”, we get the band’s signature melodic riffing alongside subtle atmospheric arrangements, creating a very immersive atmosphere. One particular tweak is the use of more clean vocals, compared to their previous release, with both Lauri Silvonen and Vagelis Karzis contributing to this. As the band pummels through “Evenfall”, “Burning Sky”, and “Death Leads the Way”, the band further explores this more balanced approach with a nice addition of some orchestral arrangements, courtesy of Saku Moilanen, further enriching the experience.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Dark Tranquillity - Endtime Signals (2024)

    cover

    As one of our favorite bands of all time, Dark Tranquillity has always consistently delivered high quality releases and “Endtime Signals” is not the exception. After shedding a few members since their 2020 release, the band returns with fourteen tracks of signature DT music, filled with dynamic guitars, immersive keyboards and Mikael Stanne’s characteristic snarl. There are definitely some minor noticeable adjustments as now Martin Brändström and Johan Reinholdz have taken over the songwriting from departed drummer Anders Jivarp.

    Opening with “Shivers and Voids”, we get the traditional guitar driven DT music that we all love, full of highly melodic passages and subtle keyboards to keep things smooth and enjoyable. On “Unforgivable” we have a more dynamic style of guitar leads that have a different but still well crafted and blistering style. Johan Reinholdz is a good guitarist, but certainly not at the level of Christopher Amott, who did the leads on 2020 “Moment”.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Robse - Harlekin & Krieger (2024)

    cover

    Unleashing nearly 45 minutes of lively Melodic Death Metal, today we have Germany’s Robse and their debut release “Harlekin & Krieger”. With an old-school European Melodic DM style, this outfit delivers eleven tracks of high-octane moments filled with crafty melodic onslaughts and engaging vocals. If you are a fan of bands like Crematory, Dawn of Disease, and Night in Gales, this is another outfit that will satisfy your headbanging cravings.

    After a cinematic intro, the release kicks into full gear with the crafty album title track. Paired with engaging melodic riffs, intense drumming and Robert-Martin Dahn’s harsh vocals, this track sets a very lively and engaging tone. Short, catchy, and full of melody, songs like “Hey Sturm”, “Amenthes”, and our favorite “Aus dem Gleichgewicht”, create a very seamless and enjoyable experience as the album plays. We particularly enjoy the additional elements thrown into the mix like subtle keyboards, different vocal styles, and engaging tempo changes.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Amorphis - Tales From The Thousand Lakes (Live at Tavastia) (2024)

    cover

    As one of our favorite albums of all time, “Tales From The Thousand Lakes” was the release that turned us more into Melodic Death Metal and the use of keyboards in Metal music. Fast-forward 30 years, yes, it has been that long, Amorphis has decided to release a live version of this release, recorded at the legendary Tavastia club in Helsinki, Finland. While not just a carbon copy of the original release, this version has some subtle enhancements and also features Tomi Joutsen handling the vocal duties.

    Starting from “Thousand Lakes” and “Into Hiding”, we quickly noticed some slight differences in the keyboards. Santeri Kallio has come a long way and his style has evolved and some of this seeps into the older songs. Our all-time favorite track, “Black Winter Day” is flawlessly delivered, luckily we have seen the band play the track here and there in the live setting, but it is still nice to have it on disc with a very crisp and clear mix.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Octoploid - Beyond the Aeons (2024)

    cover

    Being huge fans of Amorphis, we always wondered what would they sound like now if they would have kept the core style behind “Tales from the Thousand Lakes” and just made refinements over time. Luckily for us, Olli-Pekka Laine, former and again current bassist from the band, unleashes Octoploid and their debut release “Beyond the Aeons”. For eight tracks and around 45-minutes, this release delivers excellent proggy Melodic Death Metal music with a very familiar style and a whole lot of catchiness.

    Opening with “The Dawn in Nothingness”, we are quickly treated to playful riffs, enthralling keyboards and Mikko Kotamäki handling the vocal duties. “Coast of the Drowned Sailors” and the opening track will quickly bring back the days of early Amorphis as it has a mixture of elements from “The Karelian Isthmus”, “Tales..”, and “Elegy”, particularly because Tomi Koivusaari handles the growls on this second song.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
    • Comments: 0

    Fall of Serenity - Open Wide, O Hell (2024)

    cover

    Delivering a swift and brutal, old-school Melodic Death Metal with some heavier touches, today we have Germany’s Fall of Serenity and their crushing “Open Wide, O Hell” release. In their first full-length release in nearly 17 years, the band shows a very interesting mixture of elements to create excellent songs to headbang and mosh from start to finish.

    The release kicks-off with the leveling “Thy Pathway” and its crafty melodic riffing, there is a certain Dissection-esque vibe that immediately got our attention. Things gradually get heavier and catchier as tracks like “Darkness, I Command”, and “I Don’t Expect I Shall Return” lead with superb guitars alongside crafty drumming and very engaging tempo changes. The band’s Melodic Death Metal is definitely on the heavier side, as you won’t find many Insomnium-esque passages.

Pages

Recent Image Galleries