Last year I came across a cool find in the state of Utah, in the form of traditional metallers Castleaxe. It was a breath of fresh air to hear music like they made as opposed to a lot of the other retro acts today, and it appears that Castleaxe has a new companion in Visigoth. A newer heavy metal act that I would definitely place in the "epic" department. Their latest EP "Final Spell" contains four tracks of solid heavy metal more in the vein of European power metal bands, in the sense that they place a lot of emphasis on clean vocals and a lot of melodies. Think of groups like Accept, Helloween, Blind Guardian, and the like, because Visigoth has a lot of resemblance to them, but they're not a complete ripoff that fails to find their own niche and the foundation for a great sound has been built in these four songs.
Visigoth gets right down to business with the opening "Creature of Desire" which starts with a faint midpaced riff that quickly changes into a shredding assault and leads perfectly into the chugging of the riffs in the verse. This song, like the others, is mainly midpaced and rarely reaches any fast moments, and a lot of the riffs are effective, but there is a lot of focus placed on the vocals and melodies which isn't a bad thing, not when the guitarists' can shred with the best and the singer can wail like this one. Rogers' vocals really shine on the title track as it fronts the melodic riffs for some catchy moments that were made for a live audience to sing along to. "Seven Golden Ships" is a heavy song, and I do mean heavy, as the riffs are slow and plod along, making a terrific backdrop for Rogers' soaring vocals, before speeding up later on. The last track "Call of the Road" is actually more along the lines of an old-school Judas Priest or Maiden song, as it's very upbeat, rather than epic. Utah could very well be a new hotbed for aspiring heavy metal acts and with bands like Visigoth around, the state has a great base to build on. "Final Spell" is not only a fun listen, but it has a real "grower" factor and I'm sure I'll enjoy this EP a lot more by the end of the year, so don't sleep on these guys.
Be sure to check out and like Visigoth on Facebook!
Highlights
"Creature of Desire"
"Final Spell"
"Seven Golden Ships"
Final Rating
4.25/5 or 85%.