UMUR
"Satan's Tomb" is an EP release by multinational heavy metal act Denner / Shermann. The EP was released through Metal Blade Records in October 2015. Denner / Shermann was formed in 2014 by original Mercyful Fate guitarists Michael Denner and Hank Shermann. They are joined here by Snowy Shaw (King Diamond, Mercyful Fate, Therion) on drums, Marc Grabowski (Demonica) on bass, and Sean Peck (Cage, Death Dealer) on vocals.
The music style on the 4 tracks on the 21:00 minutes long EP is traditional heavy metal with US power metal leanings. Which basically means pretty hard edged heavy metal with the occassional nod towards thrash. Denner´s and Shermann´s past in Mercyful Fate is clearly audible throughout the album, and although the material featured on "Satan's Tomb" is predominantly a bit harder edged than what you hear on most releases by Mercyful Fate, there are many sections, riffs, and melodies which remind me of the legendary Danish band. The material is well written but not the most original or memorable music written by the two guitarists.
Not surprisingly the musicianship is on a high level on all posts. The curricula vitae of the guys in the band speak for themselves. The drumming is organic and varied, the bass playing solid, the guitars powerful and melodic, and Sean Peck is a skilled and commanding vocalist. He doesn´t have the most distinct sounding voice, but he is one of the most arch typical US power metal vocalists on the scene, which means that he can hit the high notes, but also sing using a more raw and butch vocal approach.
The sound production is decent but not perfect. The bass especially sounds a bit thin, and as a consequence the production lacks a bit bottom end and heaviness. When that is said "Satan's Tomb" is still a nice little EP release by Denner / Shermann, and I´d be interested to hear more from this constellation while we wait for another Mercyful Fate reunion. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.