Chronomancy – Shadows In Atlantis

Chronomancy – Shadows In Atlantis
Fighter Records
Release Date: 08/03/2022
Running Time: 55:00
Review by Rory Bentley
8/10
Hey look! Another review of a Power Metal adjacent album by me – bet I’m gonna slag it off again and talk about how it’s not as good as Sick Of It All’s back catalogue eh? Because I hate anything that’s not either NY Hardcore or some pretentious Post-Rock band with a name that you can’t even pronounce aloud right? Well dear reader you are mistaken. I’m just really, really picky about the Trad / Power end of the Metal genre and thankfully this tasty little collection of songs will see nary a turned up nose or derisory snicker from yours truly.
Chronomancy have so many of the attributes I love about the Epic Heavy Metal genre. They have a superb sense of melody, excellent songwriting chops and a commanding vocalist who (for the most part) stays on the right side of cheese.
Normally when I push play on an album hailing from the melodic end of metal I find myself apprehensively wincing at the prospect of terrible vocals, normally from some guy straining to hit arbitrary high notes because he feels like he has to follow the Power Metal template. Imagine my delight then, when my man Chris A.D. Paschalidis storms in after the jaunty bagpipe intro of opener ‘Rebirth’ with a warm, powerful baritone voice. I’m all about baritone singers in Metal and I believe they make the more bombastic styles of the genre far more palatable than their ball-squeezing peers. You only have to look at the huge crossover success of Powerwolf and Sabaton to see that a more masculine, rich vocal tone can bring new converts to the cause.
Whether soaring confidently over a rousing chorus or layered into a one man choir, Chris puts in an excellent performance throughout the record, faltering slightly on the chorus of ‘Magnum Opus’ where his weak falsetto harmony tips over into a level of cringe that he’s otherwise deftly avoided.
This isn’t just a one man show of course, the guitar work throughout is excellent with every song full of melodic lead lines every bit as catchy and memorable as the vocal hooks, case in point the spooky banger ‘Dance Of The Vampires’. They also have robust riffs that pack the kind of punch often lacking in this treble-heavy style as displayed on the doomy vibes of ‘The Hunting Song’. In fact the rhythm work is so impactful I find myself wishing that it had a higher place in the overall mix. I understand the desire to present the strident vocals front of centre but even I, a vain prima donna lead singer myself, acknowledge that when it comes to metal the power of the riff compels thee.
Getting the production and mix right for these sort of albums is always a challenge, more often than not requiring a hefty budget so it’s a shame that these really quite excellent songs don’t hit as hard as they perhaps could if they had some big label cash behind them. Nuclear Blast – sign them up lads!
The only other minor niggle I have is, of course, the album length. Although there’s no major dips in quality, I do think dropping a couple of tracks would be conducive to a more cohesive listening experience. These are all minuscule quibbles, most of which are out of a small band’s control, but I was really pleasantly surprised by the confidence and sophistication on display here particularly by a band on their second album. I’ll definitely be bumping this one long after this review goes up and if you’re looking for something to tide you over until that new Blind Guardian record drops you could do a lot worse than “Shadows In Atlantis”
‘Dance of the Vampires’ – Official Audio
TRACKLISTING:
01. Rebirth
02. Dance of the Vampires
03. Pilgrims in a Foreign Land
04. The Voyager
05. Seven Deadly Kins
06. The Hunting Song
07. Magnum Opus
08. Thunderchild
09. Legions of Mist
10. Shadows in Atlantis
11. Up With the Phoenix
LINE-UP:
Chris A.D. Paschalidis – Vocals
Tyrtaeus Kamarinos – Guitars, Flute Recorder, Backing Vocals
Yiangos Sourbis – Guitars
Thanos “Somber” Dogranlis – Bass
Mary Sypoula – Keys, Backing Vocals
Kyriakos Tsakalidis – Drums
LINKS:

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