Keep Of Kalessin - Armada (2006 Black)

Keep Of Kalessin - Armada

Review from www.voidexpression.net


It’s a somewhat rare instance when a black metal act can employ crystal clear production and execution without sacrificing its vitriol and bile, but the extremely under-rated (though that is quickly changing) Keep of Kalessin have accomplished just that here on their third album. It’s kind of surprising that the band have hidden beneath the “mainstream” metal surface for this long, being fronted by who became one of Satyricon’s live members and having genre heavy-hitters such as Attila and Frost doing time in the band in the past, but all that is about to change as Armada has catapulted them into the international spotlight, and for good reason! This is an absolute beast of an album, taking all the best parts of progressive symphonic and raw traditional black metal and integrating them seamlessly with some of the best production you will hear on a metal album this year. There are also several instances of blasting thrash and brutal death influences scattered throughout, and enough technical twists and turns to keep you thoroughly entertained. The drumming is intense and on-point and the fast tracks can pretty much do no wrong, though the slower, more anthemic, tracks in the middle of the album can get a little dull upon repeated listenings. New vocalist Thebon is not afraid to go all over the map, and has the skills to do pretty much everything to at the very least an acceptable level. Album opener “Crown of Kings” sees him flowing between blackened shrieks, aggressive clean bellows, and deathened growls with what seems like little effort, and “The Black Uncharted” highlights his stellar singing voice and thrashy shouts. The track also features some well-done, slightly Latin, acoustic passages that surprisingly flow right along with the rest of the track. Without the slower middle third of the album, this would be a damn near perfect modern black metal masterpiece, and hopefully the next few albums will see these guys continue to improve.

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