Stigma - Concerto For The Undead (2010)

If you usually judge a book by its cover, you will image that Stigma plays Punk or something in that vicinity. But once you start listening to this album you will be blown away with a Melodic Death Metal sound that will hook you since the first riff. The band does a great job at mixing Melodic DM with harsher elements, making their sound very dynamic and fresh.

“Concerto For The Undead” features great artwork that reminded us of the Tales From The Crypt comic books, and as you can see in the band’s promo pictures, it’s one of their clear influences. We love when bands use horror movies as an influence since it’s one of our passions, and they could make for very interesting lyrics.

Going back to the band’s music, we have brilliant riffs, catchy melodies and stellar drumming in this release. The band excels at using some of the modern elements of current Melodic Death Metal, like the break downs and vocal style, but never sounding like Metalcore or ‘Emo’. We have noticed that the new wave of Italian bands are masters at mixing Trash or Melodic DM with modern influences but keeping the music real, bands like Fomento and My Darkest Side.

The harsh vocals are comprised of deeper growls and higher pitched screams that prevail through the album. The vocal layering of this album is very good and provides for a rich listening experience adding brutality to the band’s sound. The band plays Melodic Death Metal, and they never push the boundaries too far into the technical world and their songs are simple but good. Some guitar solos are great and they are perfectly composed into the songs.

If you are looking for a fresh band that is both aggressive and melodic, you should pickup “Concerto For The Undead” once it comes out. For any fan of Melodic Death Metal with a modern touch, this release will blow you away. So be prepared for 10 tracks and 40 minutes of B movie inspired metal music.

Release: May 4th, 2010

Country: Italy