Stygian - Fury Rising
Has Metallica been reincarnated in the band called Stygian? It certainly seems so. From the opening track on Fury Rising, "Suffering Patiently" just speaks everything that the heavy metal masters have done in the past; most recently in fact. A lot of the guitar licks and vocals sound like something that came directly off Metallica's Death Magnetic album. And, fortunately, it is done right. Stygian has some great, hard heavy rock to listen to for almost anyone with a love for the rock and metal genres.
The album only gets better at is progresses. "Crimson Sand" sheds its Metallica skin (musically at least) for some hard, chugging rock vibe that makes perfect music to work out to or do something aerobic. The vocals still have that "Hetfield" edge to them, but it's subtle and not overdone. Other tracks like "My Regret" are a lot slower and melodic, but also vocally sound EXACTLY like Metallica for the most part in the sense the riffs sound very much like they came from "The Unforgiven" off Black Album. Fortunately, it isn't a complete copy or rip off; Stygian has their own flavor of style mixed in the music to keep things interesting. "One More Shot" kicks things back into thrashing Metallica gear; another great fist pumping song, but it dangerously toes the line of sounding exactly like the first track. If you thought the first song kicked ass, then you'll probably love this one just as much. Vocally the band begins to sound a lot more like Stygian then Metallica. "Last Redemption" has a bluesy sound to it for a bit before going into a hard rock rhythm that for once, doesn't smell of Metallica riffs and instead gives Stygian a moment to show their own style, if that even is their style. It's a good hard rocker nonetheless.
The other tracks "Unstrung Hero," "The Fear," and "Glass Legacy" are where Stygian define their sound. Gone is the Metallica riffs and instead we are graced with catchy, groove rock. It's hard, it's fast, and gladly, sounds original. The vocals begin to take their own shape and sound too, but they are still showing their Metallica roots. The music is based more on the modern hard rock sound than metal; it isn't anything extremely heavy or laden with solos, even though there are a few. It's good, mid paced stuff, and possibly extremely radio friendly in the future. The final track, "Fever Slide," is the slowest track on the album, and it's mostly acoustic with some piano features. The vocalist finally takes his own mantle in style and even though his voice sounds a little rough at times, it's great to hear it. The music is beautiful and well arranged leaving the audience with a fantastic closer. Overall this album is just awesome, downright awesome. Fans of Godsmack, Breaking Benjamin, and of course, Metallica, will eat this up like candy. Hopefully future work of Stygian will continue to evolve, but not so much as to the point that they give up their Metallica influenced sound forever.
Originally writen for The Metal Forge
The album only gets better at is progresses. "Crimson Sand" sheds its Metallica skin (musically at least) for some hard, chugging rock vibe that makes perfect music to work out to or do something aerobic. The vocals still have that "Hetfield" edge to them, but it's subtle and not overdone. Other tracks like "My Regret" are a lot slower and melodic, but also vocally sound EXACTLY like Metallica for the most part in the sense the riffs sound very much like they came from "The Unforgiven" off Black Album. Fortunately, it isn't a complete copy or rip off; Stygian has their own flavor of style mixed in the music to keep things interesting. "One More Shot" kicks things back into thrashing Metallica gear; another great fist pumping song, but it dangerously toes the line of sounding exactly like the first track. If you thought the first song kicked ass, then you'll probably love this one just as much. Vocally the band begins to sound a lot more like Stygian then Metallica. "Last Redemption" has a bluesy sound to it for a bit before going into a hard rock rhythm that for once, doesn't smell of Metallica riffs and instead gives Stygian a moment to show their own style, if that even is their style. It's a good hard rocker nonetheless.
The other tracks "Unstrung Hero," "The Fear," and "Glass Legacy" are where Stygian define their sound. Gone is the Metallica riffs and instead we are graced with catchy, groove rock. It's hard, it's fast, and gladly, sounds original. The vocals begin to take their own shape and sound too, but they are still showing their Metallica roots. The music is based more on the modern hard rock sound than metal; it isn't anything extremely heavy or laden with solos, even though there are a few. It's good, mid paced stuff, and possibly extremely radio friendly in the future. The final track, "Fever Slide," is the slowest track on the album, and it's mostly acoustic with some piano features. The vocalist finally takes his own mantle in style and even though his voice sounds a little rough at times, it's great to hear it. The music is beautiful and well arranged leaving the audience with a fantastic closer. Overall this album is just awesome, downright awesome. Fans of Godsmack, Breaking Benjamin, and of course, Metallica, will eat this up like candy. Hopefully future work of Stygian will continue to evolve, but not so much as to the point that they give up their Metallica influenced sound forever.
Originally writen for The Metal Forge
- Suffer Patiently
- Fury Rising
- Crimson Sand
- My Regret
- One More Shot
- Last Redemption
- Unstrung Hero
- The Fear
- Glass Legacy
- Fever Slide
Mortal Music
Reviewer: Colin McNamara
Apr 20, 2010
Apr 20, 2010
Next review:
Six Magics - Behind The Sorrow
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