Vintersea - Illuminated (2019)

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Hailing from the USA, today we have Vintersea and their very unique and interesting sophomore release “Illuminated”. Featuring tons of cool influences ranging from bands like Borknagar, Cronian to the likes of Into Eternity and more proggy outfits, this album contains nearly 40 minutes of exciting music. If you are a fan of melodic and progressive music with a very experimental edge and don’t mind growls or clean female vocals, this is certainly something to check out.

The album deceivingly starts quite intense with “Spawn Awakening”, but this does not last too long as the track transitions into proggy and dreamy territories quite quick. With the opening track finishing quite intensely, the band nicely transitions to the mellower “Old Ones”, which is led by the fantastic clean vocals of Avienne Low. With Avienne also handling the harsh vocals, the transitions are quite seamless and interesting, allowing the songs to shift moods very quickly and dramatically, as on the excellent melancholic track “Illuminated”.

Our favorite, and yet odd, track in this release has to be “Crack of Light” and its jazzy interludes that are oddly contrasted some odd vocal choices and killer proggy elements. This is definitely one of the most unique songs we have heard in 2019, and we listen to over 400 albums a year. Going back into heavier territories, “Fiery Tongue” is another brilliant piece filled with punishing guitar riffs, dramatic choral arrangements and excellent guitar leads.

Closing with the Borknagar-esque “Befallen”, the band leaves the listener excited to spin this album once more and uncover some extra details on the next run. While not very long in duration, “Illuminated” packs a lot of punch in terms of unique and complex songs that need more than a few spins to be enjoyed. If you like your music to be melodic and challenging, Vintersea is definitely a band you need to start following.

Band: Vintersea Album: Illuminated

Label: M-Theory Audio

Release: September 27th, 2019

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Genre: Melodic/Progressive Metal

Country: USA

Rating: 87/100
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