Typically, you can judge a cheesy power metal album just from its cover art. Look at the laser-powered sharks/dinos from Victorius, the D&D fantasy elements of Power Paladin, or the stuffed assembly of characters on Angus McSix, and you know you’re getting yourself a heap of cheddar. The covers are busy, bombastic, and as brightly-colored as Frida Ohlin’s hair (see band photo below). Sweden’s Rexoria bucks that trend. The cover art for Fallen Dimension looks like it belongs on a work of dystopian prog like Vanderlust. They deliver something far more light-hearted, though—symphonic power metal. Rexoria deem themselves the birth of a genre called “Royal Metal”—it’s in their name. Rex means king, and Oria means gold. Royal metal. Get it? So just what is this new tag? More importantly, would you like your royale with cheese?

Fallen Dimension blends old school heavy metal with modern power metal and a dash of keyboard synths. While they boast of symphonics in their promo sheet, Rexoria have more in common with Unleash the Archers than Mystfall. They combine the joyful energy of Frozen Crown with the straightforward approach of Sabaton. With honed pop structures, Rexoria set aside the wankery of many power metal bands and dive quickly into their anthemic choruses. Blink, and you might miss the music that happens between the opening spoken word segment and hooky chorus on opener “Metallic Rain.” If you like the bop and energy of power metal without its often masturbatory shredding, then this is for you. Rexoria has solos, but they’re in and out in a flash, all to ensure songs end in a (mostly) tidy 3-4 minutes. The downside is that where bands like Frozen Crown and Unleash the Archers do some really cool stuff with their guitars, the guitars on Fallen Dimension sound generic and bland.

Frontwoman Frida Ohlin gives Rexoria a more distinctive sound relative to more recent power metal bands. She has a gritty voice akin to Joan Jett rather than the smooth and joyful tone of Frozen Crown’s Giada Etro. She delivers some really good choruses, bringing to life the likes of “Break the Wave” and “Running with the Stars” with her energetic delivery. She even shows a more tender side on the rock ballad, “Heart of Sorrow,” a duet with Johnny Gioeli (Axel Rudi Pell). Her grit keeps the bouncy, formulaic songs from going too far down the road of pop music. It’s not that the other players are incompetent—they just don’t have much to work with. The drums are standard, galloping blast beats, and the guitar riffs are competent if uninspired. Rexoria brought in a new bassist (Adam Nordquist) for Fallen Dimension, but I rarely heard him. Usually a record like this benefits from outside hooks, and the synths tend to be hit or miss. There are some good ones, such as those on “Metallic Rain,” but on follow-up “Awakening,” I couldn’t help but wonder if they started recycling synth lines.

In general, Fallen Dimension is a pleasant listen that’s also forgettable due to its jack-of-all-trades nature. Rexoria’s plug-and-chug approach allows for an enjoyable energy and choruses that hit the right notes. Yet there’s very little to distinguish them from the power metal pack. The opening riff on “Wasted Land” sounds a lot like something from a Fellowship record, while a majority of their other riffs are hardly more creative than your run-of-the-mill radio rock music. I didn’t dislike any of the songs, yet nothing really grabbed me either. Some of the choruses stuck in my head for a little while, but without any real emotional impact. Rexoria has all the pieces in place—they’re just missing that extra something to make them shine.

Power metal serves as a bridge between extreme and popular music. It often contains pop structures that appeal to a wider audience, yet can still stretch the limits with exciting musical prose that can appeal to thrill-seeking extremists. The pitfall of flirting with more commercial styles is that it often leads to formulaic and watered-down music. Rexoria boasts in their promo sheet of millions of Spotify streams and half a million YouTube views, so clearly they are finding success. It would just be nice to see them take some risks. Too often, success gets in the way of art. I hope Rexoria can continue to find success while also developing the art of their music.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: N/A | Format Reviewed: Stream
Label: Black Lodge Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook | Official Site
Releases Worldwide: May 8th, 2026

#NowPlaying 🎶

Released today, Embers of a Dying World by Mystfall

bandcamp link:
https://scarletrecords.bandcamp.com/album/embers-of-a-dying-world

#Music #Metal #SymphonicMetal #Mystfall

Once again, I return to my roots. That opulent, gem-encrusted egg from which my metalhead nascency spawned, symphonic power metal. Cloaked in velvet drapery as I return to these cobbled alleys I used to haunt, those early years steeping in Nightwish, Leaves’ Eyes, Epica, and Xandria wash over me, evoking a nostalgic bliss. Enter Greece’s Mystfall and their sophomore effort Embers of a Dying World. Relatively fresh on the scene, and competing with newer champions like Elvellon or Dialith, do Mystfall have what it takes to make waves?

If nothing else, Mystfall have two big things going for them: a (relatively) meaty guitar tone and the most convincing death growls and blackened rasps in the genre right now. Thanks to a moderately-better-than-industry-standard mix and master, you can clearly hear the bass guitar thundering underneath lush strings and prominent choirs as well. These are items that countless acts in this space neglect or shortchange, but not Mystfall. Thankfully, those items don’t detract from the usual suspects. Operatic mezzo-soprano lead vocals, heavily accented; hooky verse work and soaring choruses; galloping drums and brisk pacing; rich orchestrations; the gang’s all here, and in fine form for the most part. And, in another unexpected breath of fresh air, Embers of a Dying World clocks in at a tidy 38 minutes, with the longest song just barely brushing past five minutes. It seems that on paper, Mystfall fully understood their assignment and gave me everything the world needs in a modern symphocheese record.

Embers Of A Dying World by Mystfall

In practice, Embers of a Dying World acquits itself quite nicely as well. Enlisting the help of studio bassist and harsh vocalist Stelios Varotsakis was an inspired choice, as his counterpoint on both instruments elevates everything it touches (“Embers of a Dying World,” “Fading Memories”). It is my assertion that Mystfall make him a full-fledged member of the band immediately. However, his contributions aren’t so astounding as to distract from Marialena Trikoglou’s siren song, Aris Baris’ chuggy riffs, or Dimitris Miglis’ expressive percussion. Hints of old school Epica melodies (“Crimson Dawn,” “Echoes of Arcadia”), Leaves’ Eyes/Xandria adventurism (“Whispers of the Tempest,” “Guardians of the Earth,” “Cosmic Legends”) and Nightwish double bass bounce (“Sleeper in the Abyss”) coalesce into a fun variety of moods and motifs, all smartly woven together to allow each performer their spotlight. With such a bizarrely tight runtime, Embers of a Dying World is also ridiculously easy to spin multiple times in one session, assisting greatly with long-term memorability.

Unfortunately, Mystfall still struggles to find a distinct identity in the homologous plague the symphonic power metal scene perpetuates. While crafting an enjoyable album that is undoubtedly fun and wholly engaging, its similarity to those bands that originally forged the style is undeniable and obvious. Partly due to the strict and restrictive nature of operatic singing techniques—and the physiological difficulties that committing to that style poses to the exploration of any other kind of singing—Marialena’s technically competent performance here lacks impact and power when pinned against singers who can and do work in multiple disciplines (Simone Simons, Floor Jansen, Veronica Bordacchini). On the instrumental front, Aris Baris’ riffs rarely venture outside of the conventions long upheld in this field, often allowing the orchestrations to take point when leading melodies or initiating motifs. Even the dramatic orchestrations lack the showstopping quality they could have if they were either recorded with a full orchestra or more unique in composition or arrangement.

As a result, Embers of a Dying World feels misplaced in time. Were it released in 1996 or thereabouts, it would’ve constituted an instant hit, a direct competitor to the pack leaders at the time. In 2026, it’s one in a million, albeit better made and brilliantly edited. As maligned by songwriting issues and stylistic banality as symphonic power metal often is, competing for acclaim and attention in that crowded place requires a fierce, striking showing. Mystfall have everything they need to make that showing, but Embers of a Dying World falls just short of that elusive threshold. That said, I’m impressed with it enough to wait avidly for what Mystfall might come up with next!

Rating: Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: mystfallofficial.com | facebook.com/mystfallofficial
Releases Worldwide: March 20th, 2026