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Insinistra are a Symphonic Metal act from Czechia, not a place well known for this style of Metal, and their debut EP, Art of Slavery, shows off a promising young band that grasps what makes this genre work. Musically, they take very heavy inspiration from Nightwish in their songwriting and especially in singer Maria Ponomareva's performance, who sounds a good bit like Tarja did around Century Child, and inject a bit of Middle Eastern influence to stand out a bit. Oftentimes, bands like this focus so much on the symphonic elements they forget to make it heavy, but Insinistra actually have some bite to them with pummeling guitar work and some damn fine riffs to support the lovely vocals and orchestrations that aren't as grand as what Tuomas and co. did in their prime, but certainly blow anything they've done in over a decade clear out of the water. I'd say the first half is better than the second, with "Weeping Spell" and especially "The Epoch of Wrath" showing of developed songwriting and killer vocal melodies, while "Snowbound" and "Lullaby for the Damned" suffer from harsh vocals that don't add anything and end up being a distraction as well as a lack of the Middle Eastern melodies the previous songs had, but the entire EP is a solid listen throughout its runtime. Anyone who misses the days when Nightwish were anything but an endless ego trip will find a lot to love on Art of Slavery, along with a new band to keep an eye out for in the future.