Valyria hails from Western Canada and is a
melodic death metal band that released their first EP “Collatus” in 2014. Despite
having just 6 tracks (and one of them being an intro), this release exceeds 30
minutes and could just as easily be considered a full-length. Regardless of
what you call it, “Collatus” offers up some incredibly competent melodeath,
showing off a variety of influences from across the subgenre (and even some
that are outside of it). While the first full track, “Polaris”, bludgeons you
with speed and riffs, it also introduces you to the band’s vocal approach,
using both clean and harsh vocals. While I enjoy both elements individually, I’ve
always been of the opinion that few bands are able to combine them successfully.
It’s difficult to say which side of the spectrum Valyria falls on. As you might
expect, the growling is excellent, but it’s the clean vocals that are
questionable. They’re very nasally, and though the singer can hit the notes in
key, it just doesn’t sound right. Even compared to bands like Insomnium where
the clean singing isn’t stellar, Valyria’s singer still falls a bit short. I
will admit though, after a few listens, his style will likely grow on you a
bit.
If you find yourself having a bit of a
difficult time with the clean vocals, it’s worth pointing out that there’s a
lot else to enjoy here. First and foremost, there are a lot of riffs on this
album. Sometimes melodeath gets caught up having some chugging with melodic
leads over top, but that is not Valyria’s focus. Instead, there are galloping,
thrashing, and even shredding riffs on this EP. Sometimes the band takes a more
straight forward death metal approach uses tremolo picking, while at others,
they throw in some harmonized guitars playing scalar patterns. Regardless of
how they do it, there’s always something interesting going on from a guitar
perspective.
The rhythm section on this EP is likewise
pretty impressive. It’s hard for drummers and bassists to stand out in extreme
metal because nearly every metal drummer is incredibly talented and most
bassists can’t even be heard. For that reason, Valyria’s drummer is definitely
worthy of the throne, but doesn’t standout amongst the crowd. By contrast, the
bass playing on this album is easy to hear, and while it isn’t overly
technical, it does a good job of filling up the low-end. "The Blinded Torch" even features a bass interlude!
One of the defining factors of this EP is
the heavy keyboard use. Though they occasionally take the main melody, they don’t
do so in a cheesy Rhapsody of Fire-esque way. Instead, they create haunting atmospheres
that enhance what the rest of the band is doing. It would be interesting to
hear the ban focus even more on this aspect because it is something relatively
unique. In any case, “Collatus” is an impressive first effort, and though I
wish the clean vocals would be less prominent (particularly in “Polaris”), the
EP is still very enjoyable.
Highlight
"The Blinded Torch"
Final Rating
3.5/5 or 70%.
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