Logan Thompson, the one man show behind the Death/Unblack Metal project “Symphony of Heaven”, last year released a couple of songs such as “Anno Domini” and “Of Scars and Soil” which eventually lead to a release of a full-fledged album “The Season of Death”. In July 2017, Symphony of Heaven had joined the roster of Nosral Recordings, alongside Ascending King and Children of Wrath. Luke Dinan (of the Children of Wrath and Ascending King fame) produced the album.
Logan lists Metallica, Dimmu Borgir, Cannibal Corpse, Antestor and Grave Declaration as some of his influences, and I’ve been following him on Facebook, he sure likes to play a wide variety of metal which is always a treat to the ear. The album was released on the 24th of November 2017.
Without much ado, let me jump on to the first track, “Strategem” which starts off with a blazing riff which is accentuated by clean guitars and the keys giving the chill ambience, the blast beats brings some pace to the track and deathly growls sends a shiver down the spine. Oh! Did I miss telling you about the blitzing guitar solo. “War in the wind” chimes in with a siren warning us of the wind that might shake the earth and unleash other mighty forces, the same can be felt as the screams are heard with guttural expulsions and we experience great energy in the song. The blast beats remain a constant with a bit of variation on the kit and some low guitar chugs of what I would like to call an interlude.
“Anno Domini” starts off with a maddening blast beat and guitar shredding on it to the dot. The guitars are chunkier than before and the solo melodic, although the volume on the guitar solo was low. Next up, “In Angers Midst”, where Logan gets ballistic with a catchy rhythm and drum beats that chops the sound and makes for a crisp outlet. As I move ahead with the album, the songs get meatier and heavier. “The Meditation of my Heart” opens up with a clean guitar strum and the keys give it grand ambience, the guitars looms with an eerie riff which helps set a hypnotic soundscape which sure is to give a pleasant surprise.
“Of Scars and Soil” has some intelligent song arrangements, the guitar chugs would definitely get you head-banging and the vocals on the track truly makes one shiver when the high pitched scream mixes flawlessly with the guttural screams. The outro ends well with clean keys (something reminded me of Burzum here). “Come and Rest” starts off with a melodic intro on the Keys and chilling vocals carrying the song forward. The guitar shreds on a lower octave delivering some truly metal chugs coupled with Blast beats and flairs it up well on the guitars with an Epic solo.
The album culminates with “Time Transcending” which is nothing short of an Epilogue reminding its listeners of the concept of Unblack metal and reviving their faith.
Production : Production was a problem on this album, some tones were not mixed and mastered well, during the guitar solos the tones could have been sharper and the volume louder. The bass took a back seat and wasn’t given its fair share I feel, and the drums were synthetic, which I guess is understandable as I know Logan recently launched a fund raiser to get a drum kit (All the best!).
Conclusion : For a debut album I gave it a good listen, and often more than usual and I couldn’t help listen to it over and over again. There is some promising music delivered but I feel it is yet to hit maturity (here’s hoping for more music in the future) Do give it a listen!!
Rating: 7/10
Written by: Ankit Sood
Tracklist:
1. Stratagem
2. War In The Wind
3. Anno Domini
4. In Anger’s Midst
5. The Meditation Of My Heart
6. Of Scars And Soil
7. Come And Rest
8. Time Transcending
Record label: Nosral Recordings
Release Date: 24 Nov. 2017
Band members
Logan Thompson – guitars, bass, drums, vocals
Weblinks: Twitter / Bandcamp / SellMyTees
Buy the album here:
Holland: First Paradox
Norway: Nordic Mission
Video for ‘In Anger’s Midst’