Rapid Fire Reviews: Episode 2

Rapid Fire Reviews is a series where I give some quick takes on some albums I recently listened to and did not have enough thoughts on to make a full scale review. Today's episode takes us through a double album, a sophomore effort, a trip to the underworld of Norse mythology, and more. Enjoy your reading, and stay metal.

Demon Hunter - Peace
Demon Hunter - War

Demon Hunter is a great band who have carved out a nice little career, but they have never seemed to pull off an entire album, so obviously they go with the double now to double up the disappointment. Both "Peace" and "War" are exactly what you would expect from the band, with "Peace" showing their more mellow side, and "War" their heavier. In terms of quality, both albums are pretty even, not pulling away from one another in a drag race, but the consistency is a whole different story. "Peace" is much more consistent in its sound, but the true highlights are few, while "War" has some great songs like "Grey Matter" and "The Negative", but there are moments in here that would fit in with "Peace", making this concept a little weaker than it should be. It is as it always is with Demon Hunter, you get a bunch of cool songs you can add to your playlist, but the albums leave little to no impact.

Rating: 6/10 Lesser Gods

Oh, and if you were wondering, "Peace" is to me the slightly better record, thanks to its consistency.

Mark Morton - Anesthetic

Spotify has this thing called "Metal Talks", where metal bands get to talk about their new album and their career so far. It is always interesting to listen to these sound clips because you get more insight on both the band and especially their new material. Mark Morton is in the latest episode, talking for instance about how he got in touch with several of the guest artists that contributed for his first solo record (Chester Bennington, Jacoby Shaddix, Myles Kennedy, just to name a few). Unfortunately, it did not really change my view of "Anesthetic", which I think is sort of the same as Slash's first solo record. It is diverse for sure, but it does not have a red line that ties it all together, not even Mark's famous groovy riff style appears on all songs. There are hits, and there are misses, making "Anesthetic" an interesting, but also a pretty rocky experience. Those who liked him in Lamb of God should give this one a try, just do not expect much metal from it.

Rating: 6,5/10 Blurs

Spirits of Fire - S/T

Oh Tim "Ripper" Owens, you never seem to find your place in the metal world. The former Judas Priest and Iced Earth singer has been searching for a main stay band for quite some time now, and in 2018 he just went for broke, starting up three different projects in hopes to see if anything sticks. Spirits of Fire is one of these three bands, a US power metal group containing Chris Caffrey from Savatage, Steve DiGiorgio from Testament, and former Fates Warning drummer Mark Zonder. It is a good group of veterans that is creating some nice melodic heavy metal that is reminiscent of Dio, Iced Earth, and also Fight. Chris' guitar work is especially splendid, coming with some great riffs and solos. It is not something that is gonna blow your mind though, but it is consistent enough to give a fair shot. It is certainly better than The Three Tremors (not an impressive achievement exactly).

Rating: 7/10 Temples of The Soul

The Raven Age - Conspiracy

I reviewed the debut of The Raven Age about two years ago, stating that the band definitely have some talent, but needs to restrain themselves, not rushing things so that they have time to create more dynamic music. Well, here we are with their sophomore effort "Conspiracy", and it is more versatile alright, but also much more inconsistent. The band have become a little more alternative in their metal style, losing most of the dark, eerie sound they established in "Darkness Will Rise", which is a shame since I think they could have taken that to more interesting places. "Conspiracy" does show some promise still, having a nice variety to it and all, but the overall picture is kind of bleak, not standing out at all as something that will be long lasting. At best, "Conspiracy" is a bland record with some small high points in its song writing, but it is never a good thing when the album cover is the best part of the record.

Rating: 5,5/10 Surrogates

Týr - Hel

The viking kings of The Faroe Islands are back at their own shores after their largest quest yet, and their newest offering "Hel" is showing a band hungry for new music. If you have heard these guys before, you know mostly what you are gonna get, great power metal about Norse mythology while also throwing in some lessons in the Faroe language. It is a fun time from first second to last, and for fans who have been waiting a long time for these guys to once again appear will rejoice. I do think though that "Hel" is a little too meaty for its own good, clocking in at 1 hour and 9 minutes. Týr could have easily cut away some songs to give this record more of an impact, maybe save a couple of them for the next album. Oh well, this album ended up feeling more like Valhalla than Hel anyway, so why complain.

Rating: 7,5/10 Sunset Shores

Demon Hunter - Outlive (2017)

Whenever I do a review of a band that I have reviewed before, I tend to check back on my older reviews, to remind me of what the previous records sounded like, and while most of my older reviews are of lesser quality, they still have some good points that I still stand behind. One perfect example is the review of Demon Hunter's "Extremist", where I stated that the band always have one or two songs per album, with the rest being filler. Well, another album is here, and it is truly the same old song and dance.

Another cover with their trademark devil skull, another 12-pack of decent to mediocre metalcore songs, and another clean but stale production work. yeah, it is more of the same that we have been used to from the band, and it is just tiring at this point. This band has its own sound and obviously know how to make great songs, they just do not make enough of them to fill a full album. At this point, they are becoming a Motörhead of metalcore, just not as witty or interesting.

As stated before though, there are always a couple of songs that do catch my interest in every album, and the same goes for "Outlive". "Jesus Wept" is one of those few really heavy outbursts the band manages from time to time, and it works well sitting behind the slow opener "Trying Times", jumpstarting the album with its aggressive tone. It does feel out of place with the rest of "Outlive", but trust me, it is a much needed track when you know about the rest. "Patience" is also a nice song, a classic Demon Hunter song that is very easy to like, with good rhythms and a pleasant chorus. The last song "Slight The Odds" is fairly decent too, experimenting with violins to give a more classical sound (it is a little dragged out though).

The rest of the album is just one big meh, nothing to really discuss about. I think the main problem here is that most of the songs on "Outlive" just does not have any energy at all, playing in a lifeless manner that does not require much effort at all. It does not feel like the band is trying at all here, and if they are, then they are clearly stuck, because it is just more of the same. Close to everything in here is so incredibly bland, nothing is memorable (well, except for the god awful Hatebreed/Cradle of Filth/Lamb of God ripoff "One Less", you will remember that). It just makes me feel more and more tired, and that is definitely not a feeling I want from a metal album, that is for sure.

I try to find as many positive things here as possible, but there are few straws to be found. The performances are just really forgettable, the production does not help to raise the quality at all, and the lyrics are nothing special either. However, I should mention that we are not dealing with a bad album here, just a really bland and uninspiring one. The band still does their own thing, and while it may not be very original, I gotta commend them for sticking to their guns. Still, it is guns with little to no real ammo.

In conclusion, "Outlive" is just like any Demon Hunter album out there, only that it is way more tiring. It got some neat songs, but that is about it. The band is still in their little limbo, trying to mix in the soft and the heavy in a mix that just does not mix very well. When the one thing that has changed the most between records are the album artwork, then that is evidence enough to that you might want to search for a new direction, something to shake the life out of this band. I really want the band to succeed some time in the future, just once make an album that is kickass all the way through, but I am afraid that train has already left the station

Songs worthy of recognition: Patience, Jesus Wept, Slight The Odds

Rating: 4/10 Trying Times

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More reviews of Demon Hunter
Extremist

Demon Hunter - Extremist (2014)

Do not take the album cover nor the title as hints of what the album will sound like, because you will only get disappointed. Demon Hunter is not anywhere near extreme metal or anything like that, they are instead performing very likable, but generic metal core that tries to be tougher than what it is. "Extremist" is the band's seventh offering, and it is once again a album that will please their fans, but not make them gain more in any significant number.

The problem I have with Demon Hunter is that every time they release an album, the same thing happens. 2-3 songs are really good while the rest of the pack are just fillers. The same goes with "Extremist". Out of the 12 songs in the album, I am only taking a liking towards 3 songs. The first one is "Artificial Light". It is almost sounds like a cover of a Soilwork song, but the band still manages to make it their own with a really nice chorus that is captivating. The second song is "What I'm Not", a song that is Demon Hunter to the bone. It is these kinds of songs that originally got me into the band. If the band did more of these powerful and modern songs, then I would appreciate their work even more. The third song is "Cross To Bear", which is the hardest song on the album (besides from the short opener "Death"). It has a great amount of punch and if you did not listen to the rest of the album, you would think that Demon Hunter was a lot harder of a band than what they actually were.

The rest of the songs are just either boring ballads ("I Will Fail You", "Hell Don't Need Me") or pure fillers ("In Time", "Beyond Me") that wants too much. Is it too much for the band to make a full album with high quality songs? They have the know hows, so why do they not use it on all of the songs? I don't know, maybe they want to please too many at the same time, a move that has kept many bands from truly evolving.

However, I will give credit to the band that they stay true to their sound and at least tries to evolve. "Extremist" is in fact a small step forward from its predecessor, "True Defiance", and it could also be the band's best album up to date. But that does not mean that "Extremist" will be on my top list at the end of the year.

"Extremist" is not a disappointment, but it is neither a pleasant surprise. Just like its predecessors, it has some songs that stands out and shows the band's full potential. However, the majority of songs are just boring fillers that makes you shrug and shake your head. For every album that goes by, I am getting more and more sure that Demon Hunter will never be a world class act. They will just be known as the band that has some good songs and some albums that are good, but nothing over the ordinary.

Songs worthy of recognition: What I'm Not, Artificial Light, Cross To Bear

Rating: 6,5/10 Gasolines