By Monk
A decade ago, I acted on a whim and desire to visit the Greek battlefields chronicled by Herodotus, and decided to retrace the route followed by the mighty Xerxes on his journey from modern Turkey to the cradle of democracy, Athens. I started my journey in what remains very much a frontier city, Thessaloniki – from where, via this most tenuous of links, hail the subjects of this latest review.
Despite having been around for more than a decade, Chronomancy have released just one full-length album (as well as a demo and an EP) and have waited seven years to follow up said issuance. Drawing from the deep well of their homeland’s mythology, ‘Shadows In Atlantis’ is very much steeped in the classic power metal mien, combining searing guitar riffage with fuck tons of overblown symphonics and layered atmospherics to create epic soundscapes which rattle and hum with energy and passion.
Where Chronomancy differ from many other power metal bands, however, is in Chris Paschalidis’ vocals, which are much deeper and mellower than most of the soprano screechers who tend to populate this particular sub-genre. His bassy delivery complements the dense rhythms in particular, and counterpoints the twin guitar harmonics of Tyrtaeus Kamarinos and Yiangos Sourbis in a way which, in turn, forces the two six-stringers to pull down on their histrionics and play at the bottom end of their respective registers.
The overall result is an impressive album which touches more bases with the classic metal mien than the power metal one. The collection has all the more impact because of its lack of aforementioned high-pitched histrionics. If you like your power metal with an emphasis on its storytelling rather how many zillion notes can be squeezed in between the paragraphs, then definitely is one album you should be considering adding to your collection.
‘Shadows In Atlantis’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
- All content © Über Rock. Not to be reproduced in part or in whole without the express written permission of Über Rock.