MEDEVIL — Conductor of Storms (review)

MEDEVIL — Conductor of Storms album cover Album · 2016 · Heavy Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
Time Signature
Enter the "medevil" times

Genre: traditional metal / US power metal

Enter Medevil from Chilliwack in Canada. Their debut album "Conductor of Storms" is to be released on August 2016 by the band themselves.

Stylistically, "Conductor of Storms" combines traditional metal with US power metal, peppering it with a bit of thrash metal. The listener is treated to classic-sounding heavy metal riffs packaged into compositions that slightly update the traditional metal sound and add the oomph of US power metal, which is especially present in 'Nightwalk' and 'Machination Factory' as well as in 'Escape'. 'A Sacrifice' is more of traditional metal track, rich in guitar harmonies and galloping rhythms. A very good example of the thrashier side of the album is 'An Empty Glass' which falls is more of a power-thrash affair. 'In the Distance' is an instrumental which strikes me as being almost cautious compared to the rest of the album. In a way, that does create an interesting sense of dynamics. The ballad 'The Angel of Rain' deviates even more, as it appears to be considerably inspired by 90s alternative rock. That's not a bad thing. It's just different. The magnum opus on the album is the epic 12-minute track 'The Fabled Uxoricide' in which Medevil venture unscathed deep into progressive territory, treating us to twists and turns as well as complex layers of harmonies and melodies.

The production is pretty good, and the sound is round and warm rather than sharp and cold. The guys in the band display solid songwriting skills and an admirable level of musicianship across the board. Liam Collingwood's vocals might be an acquired taste, but, seeing that his voice sounds like a blend of Udo Dirkschneider, Mark "The Shark" Shelton, and Biff Byford, there's no doubt that hi singing style suits this kind of music very well.

Overall, "Conductor of Storms" is a pretty strong debut album indicating that this band has great talent and great potential. Fans of traditional metal as well as US power metal should definitely invest in this album. It is definitely an album I will listen to again.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Pure Negative Attitude Hardcore Punk
FREEHOWLING
Buy this album from MMA partners
Inequiem Hardcore Punk
CICADIA
Buy this album from MMA partners
Cemetery Symmetry Hardcore Punk
HUMBLE ABODE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Sadistic Memoirs Of A Psychopath Deathcore
CONSUME THE ASSAILANT
Buy this album from MMA partners
It Wasn't Supposed To Be Like This (Instrumental) Hardcore Punk
PULSES.
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Galleons - Electric Emotions
GALLEONS
Bosh66· 8 hours ago
Galleons - Elsewhere (Official Lyric Video)
GALLEONS
Bosh66· 8 hours ago
Galleons - Neon Dreams (Official Lyric Video)
GALLEONS
Bosh66· 8 hours ago
Galleons - I Travel East As Fievel Goes West Pt. 1 - Official Lyric Video
GALLEONS
Bosh66· 8 hours ago
FREEHOWLING - SCARS FT. AARON MATTS (TEN56.) [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]
FREEHOWLING
Bosh66· 8 hours ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed