Seventh Storm are a new band formed by Mike Gaspar, formerly the drummer for Portuguese gothic metal legends Moonspell. As well as handling drum duties for Seventh Storm, Gaspar has also written and and arranged all of the music for their debut album, Maledictus (Atomic Fire). The album cover and promo photos convey a piratical theme that befits the band name and reflects Gaspar’s intention to depict the Portuguese tradition of “discovering the world, travelling far from home, exploring the seas.”
The music is suitably epic and grandiose. The sound is huge, intense and bombastic, with a heavy influence of traditional / power metal combined with a more modern melodic metal approach that perhaps owes something to Killswitch Engage and Arch Enemy. Gaspar’s drums are metronomically tight and fiercely urgent, often occupying centre-stage with whirlwind fills or relentless double kick drum segments. Guitarists Josh Riot and Ben Stockwell fanatically crank out titanic catchy metal riffs that incorporate classic heavy metal simplicity, death metal chugging grooves and even occasional elements of black metal chaos. Stockwell often launches into spirited and impassioned solos that combine melody with technical precision. Bass player Butch Cid adds weight and punch to the riffs without getting in the way.
Often the textures are augmented by orchestral-style synth parts that might prove to be divisive — on the one hand they certainly add to the cinematic fantasy setting, but on the other they bring an sense of exaggerated cartoonishness that some might find off-putting. The contributions of vocalist Rez may also split opinion.
He delivers the strong melodies and dramatic lyrics in immaculate commanding tones that range from impassioned wail to angry growl, all the while retaining a slightly sweetened radio-friendly commercial rock delivery that will be eminently palatable to some and a little too polished and glossy for others.
In keeping with the fantastical seafaring theme, Maledictus is infused with a folk music influence that comes through in many of the lead guitar melodies and is particularly obvious during some of the quiet segments where acoustic guitars and other traditional-sounding instruments such as tin whistles come to the fore. These elements set the imagery of the record firmly in the world of romantic swashbuckling high-seas adventure, and provide dynamic contrast that gives the more relentlessly heavy sections greater impact.
Maledictus fuses influences from across the metal spectrum into an extravagant, expansive and immersive saga. Heavy enough to be classed as extreme metal, melodic and smooth enough for rock radio, and full of virtuosic performances and classic metal tropes, it is an ostentatious and escapist experience.
Some will consider the grandiose imagery too fanciful or the rhapsodic stylings too garish, but many others will find their need for old-fashioned heavy metal fun truly satiated by Seventh Storm’s first voyage.
Buy the album here: https://seventhstorm.afr.link/maledictusYT
6 / 10
DUNCAN EVANS