Rampage
Bellum Infinitum
[Unsung Heroes]
I was anticipating getting a hold of this after a listen. Lord Vic has created a very traditional heavy metal album. "Up From The Depths" is a great intro with Pink Floyd/Black Sabbath guitar noodling. It segues into "Rainbow Skies". Heads down! This riff smokes like old Maiden. The vocals are deathy trying to be traditional, sort of like an unattractive cousin of In Flames or Carcass' Swan Song.
Song three (track 2 in your CD player), "Sisters of Death" is a decent plodder, but is marred by attempted bombastic, emotional singing like Pavorotti!
"Storm of Avalon", first heard on Rampage's last release "Cummin' atcha LIVE" sees Lord Vic's crooning improved. He's attempting something. What it is I don't know (I think he has some secret Manowar-isms to resolve!) Great guitar licks.
"The Wakening" is so fuckin god! Totally amazing, classic soloing with accoustic guitar along side. "Soulsword" is a suitable title as it bursts onto the scene. Imagine hearing early Paradise Lost or My Dying Bride for the first time. ANY ONE into doom metal has to hear this track, and the deathy growling will appease the masses.
The hard driving headbanger "Excalibur" reminds me of cool underground I could get my hands on in 1984. Same with "Nemesis". An Early Warning song re-written. Classic riffs. Fans of Accept, Armored Saint, Dio, Iron Maiden, Metallica will have a shit-eating grin by the time Nemesis is over. Well written song, mixed in with not so great singing. BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER! Ok, Lord Vic's vocals aren't that great on "Bellum Infinitum", but they aren't so horrible you would turn off this CD. I've overlooked singers before if the music rules, plus this is gut honest underground metal.
"The Vow" has killer riffing, sort of like if Bathory cleaned up their sound and were playing NWOBHM. Trust me dude, it rocks.
"The Final Day" is two minutes of cool guitar harmonies. "Into the Great Beyond" is a metal march, in the Metallica "For Whom the Bell Tolls"-vein. I love the doomy feel, and the soloing conjures up some great undertaking that gets out of hand. "Orbis Tertius" is a hypnotic keyboard outro officially ending the album.
Bonus tracks. KISS' "War Machine" is a fun version, and SOUNDS heavy. I feel like an idiot for not knowing who did the last track here "In the Shadow of the Horns" as I know I've heard it before. It's a faceripper, in the upper echelon with Hellhammer/Celtic Frost. What a fuckin brutal god way to end "Bellum Infinitum"!
© 2000 mlotek
Song three (track 2 in your CD player), "Sisters of Death" is a decent plodder, but is marred by attempted bombastic, emotional singing like Pavorotti!
"Storm of Avalon", first heard on Rampage's last release "Cummin' atcha LIVE" sees Lord Vic's crooning improved. He's attempting something. What it is I don't know (I think he has some secret Manowar-isms to resolve!) Great guitar licks.
"The Wakening" is so fuckin god! Totally amazing, classic soloing with accoustic guitar along side. "Soulsword" is a suitable title as it bursts onto the scene. Imagine hearing early Paradise Lost or My Dying Bride for the first time. ANY ONE into doom metal has to hear this track, and the deathy growling will appease the masses.
The hard driving headbanger "Excalibur" reminds me of cool underground I could get my hands on in 1984. Same with "Nemesis". An Early Warning song re-written. Classic riffs. Fans of Accept, Armored Saint, Dio, Iron Maiden, Metallica will have a shit-eating grin by the time Nemesis is over. Well written song, mixed in with not so great singing. BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER! Ok, Lord Vic's vocals aren't that great on "Bellum Infinitum", but they aren't so horrible you would turn off this CD. I've overlooked singers before if the music rules, plus this is gut honest underground metal.
"The Vow" has killer riffing, sort of like if Bathory cleaned up their sound and were playing NWOBHM. Trust me dude, it rocks.
"The Final Day" is two minutes of cool guitar harmonies. "Into the Great Beyond" is a metal march, in the Metallica "For Whom the Bell Tolls"-vein. I love the doomy feel, and the soloing conjures up some great undertaking that gets out of hand. "Orbis Tertius" is a hypnotic keyboard outro officially ending the album.
Bonus tracks. KISS' "War Machine" is a fun version, and SOUNDS heavy. I feel like an idiot for not knowing who did the last track here "In the Shadow of the Horns" as I know I've heard it before. It's a faceripper, in the upper echelon with Hellhammer/Celtic Frost. What a fuckin brutal god way to end "Bellum Infinitum"!
© 2000 mlotek