• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

The symphonic Black Metal trend seems to have died down over the past couple of years. Either that or I just happened not to run into any. :) The Heretic are just that, all the way from Spain. I think this is the least extreme release I've heard from the Xtreem Music label which usually specialises in brutal Death Metal. Unlike the countless clones that once plagued this "scene", this is quite listenable. Yes, the obligatory keyboards are practically omnipresent, so if you can't stand them, this is not for you. The good news is that overall the keyboards are used with taste, although there are a couple of overdone moments that, well, ruin the moment. Going past that, the music borrows more from traditional metal than this genre has accustomed us to. No hyperfast playing here overall, and there's enough good riffage to make your forget about the whole "symphonic" part: There are times when this sounds like a heavy metal album with screechy vocals (but not too high.) A good job done on the more atmospheric side as well, save for the aforementioned overdone keyboards that pop up on occasion. While I'll most likely never listen to this again (a matter of personal taste), for the genre this is better than most of the stuff out there. Drop Dimmu and get this instead.