PhaĂ«thon â Wielder of the Steel Review
By Steel Druhm
Maybe Iâm alone in this, but I want more sword-swinging trve/epic metal in my life. I want more bands sounding like Cirith Ungol, Brocas Helm, and Manilla Road in circulation. I want it to be 1066 A.D. too! I guess I just miss that classic sound and find myself walking among the tombstones of olden albums like King of the Dead and Out of the Gates more and more as I approach extreme ancienthood. This made me an easy mark for Englandâs PhaĂ«thon who aspire to weld Viking-era Bathory onto the framework established by the 80s epic greats and continued by bands like Doomsword and Argus. On their Wielder of the Steel debut, they mine the depths of the 80s trve metal sound while keeping a foot in NWoBHM and the early Viking metal days. This is a heady combination, but can it be successfully forged into a weapon of might and magic? Thatâs where the metal meets the anvil, folks.
As soon as the blacksmithy opens for iron business on âEternal Hammererâ itâs clear these metalworkers love the 80s sound and atmosphere. Shades of Cirith Ungol course through the music along with Witchfinder General and Witchkiller (think âDay of the Saxonsâ then go spin that lost gem 50 times). Itâs big throwback fun delivered with great enthusiasm by the band, especially vocalist S. Vrath who really gets into character. Itâs a rousing war chanty and it should get your polearm standing at full attention. Epic and bombastic cut âVanguard of the Emperorâ goes for large bigness at all costs, sounding like Atlantean Kodex smashing headlong into Doomswordâs weakened left flank. This is battle-hungry metal born of strife and struggle and Steel is here for it every damn day. The overly dramatic spoken word section is very gratuitous and pads the song out, but overall this is a successful campaign of conquest. Especially thrilling is the wanton trveness displayed on âFor the Greater Good of Evilâ which plays out like a violent collision between Megaton Sword, Venom, and Twisted Tower Dire. Itâs sloppy, ridiculous, and overwrought, but itâs loads of fun. âBlasphemersâ incorporates a quasi-blackened thrash vibe that also works quite well, sounding aggressive and righteous.
Unfortunately, PhaĂ«thon donât always arrive with the best-laid battle plans. The 7-minutes of âTolls of Perditionâ aim for the sweet spot somewhere between epic-minded Iron Maiden and early Manowar but crash in the adjacent landfill due to WAY too many dramatic spoken word pieces with overly Shakespearian intoning that get tedious quickly (more on this later). The massive 9-plus minute closing title track is all over the map, swinging wildly trying to hit multiple moods and eras, but itâs all sound and fury signifying that itâs not that great of a song. Good bits are present but I really donât enjoy the long ride aside from the fact that at multiple points it reminded me of this long-lost 80s treasure. The most annoying aspect of the album is the recurring spoken word pieces done in a wildly over-dramatic manner. Itâs like the band hired a herald akin to Paul Bettany in A Knightâs Tale to regale you with heroic tales during the song about the very same heroic tales. After a few of these needless interruptions, you want the blustering puffery to cease and desist toot-sweet. The songwriting itself is also quite inconsistent. When itâs good, itâs good. When itâs not, things can get quite ham-fisted and awkward. At 42-plus minutes, the album feels considerably longer than it is with several songs suffering from disabling bouts of mega-bloat.
Another big obstacle to fully enjoying Wielder is vocalist S. Vrath. Heâs the ultimate love or loath frontman and his mammothly exaggerated delivery is like Uzzy Unchained from Megaton Sword if he were even MOAR unchained and then mixed with Deathmaster of Doomsword. Thatâs an ungainly combo no matter how you slice it, and the vocals here will slice your ear canals plenty. Luckily, Vrath is a far better guitarist than vocalist and along with Decado, he harnesses the NWoBHM and trve metal genres to deliver fun moments steeped in the golden age of classy metaldom.
Wielder of the Steel is like a big nostalgia bomb that fails to detonate. There are so many elements here I want to love, but the end product proves tough to cuddle up with. Some streamlining and much more focused writing could bring Phaëthon closer to acts like Megaton Sword but as of now, their hammers are running low on essential glory oil. Back to the war room, boys!
Rating: 2.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Gates of Hell
Websites: phaethon.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/phaethonband | instagram.com/phaethonband
Releases Worldwide: August 30, 2024
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