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The United Kingdom's (by way of Belfast, Northern Ireland) Darkest Era seems bent on taking a page from the books of Epic Heavy Metal bands like Atlantean Kodex and Grand Magus on their second album, Severance. You have clear, powerful vocals, huge guitar sound and booming drums and majestic atmospheres that are designed to carry you to place long ago and far away and, for the most part, Darkest Era do it pretty well. I'm not saying their songwriting is at the same level of Atlantean Kodex or even Grand Magus, but songs like "Sorrow's Boundless Realm" and "Songs of Gods and Men" take a shot at those lofty heights and they come damn close. There's nothing particularly new on Severance and a few of the tracks in the middle of the album seem a little directionless but by the time the chorus on "The Scavenger" rolls around, Darkest Era picks up the pace and I can again picture warriors on horseback riding across the plains to battle.

Darkest Era is a band on the rise and one fans of Epic Heavy Metal will want to keep a close watch on.