With over 25 years of experience at the top of the world Metal scene, the Swedes Evergrey are an institution of the heaviest sounds of Prog. The new album “A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)” was released on May 20, 2022 via Napalm Records and contains 10 medium-long tracks. The album opens with “Save Us” a track that immediately catapults us into the sounds of the band, with that melancholy touch that blends with the granite structures of the song. The rhythmic session is tight, the riffs heavy with the dynamic and expressive vocals, as always an added value for the sound, alternating solo parts and very engaging choral portraits. The sound is powerful and favors the whole of the band and not the individual musicians who collaborate with refined weaves and passages of pure Progressive Metal. Also the next track “Midwinter Calls” follows this imprinting, favoring a power and a sound of the whole, where the whole group stands out in unison. The vocal offers lead parts in choral verses and choruses, while hard guitar riffs are intertwined with pompous keyboards. The rhythm session is solid and accelerated, enriched by some tempo changes, while in the central part the guitar takes the stage with a solo insert. Returning to the singing and to a more melodic sound, the song closes leaving the choral refrains in our minds. “Ominous” is one of the longest track on the album and opens with fine guitar and keyboard works that as in other songs explore new sounds and more experimental pads. The vocal is very intense and the rhythmic session is solid and elaborate, with tempo changes and variations that allow the development of valuable instrumental textures. A track where keyboards and guitars duet with refined passages and weaves, as well as in the following track “Call Out the Dark.” The sounds are more melodic with a softer rhythm, always showing a good impsato between guitars and keyboards, constantly looking for new sounds. The vocal is intense and performs the lyrics with pathos, alternating well with the musical parts which in the central part offer an interesting virtuoso guitar solo. Powerful and with a tight rhyming section “The Orphean Testament” returns to heavier sounds with granite guitar riffs and a more aggressive vocal. An explosive blend of traditional sounds and a more modern touch, showing how the band is skilled in bringing together different generations of the Metal and Prog genres. The instrumental section in the second part of the piece offers an elaborate solo insert of keyboards and then guitar, very intense and sophisticated. In “Reawakening” the band alternates more atmospheric passages with a dilated sonority with harder ones, showing another facet of their sound. The vocal is, as always, an added value, as is the rhythmic session which is enriched by continuous tempo changes and the search for new sounds on the keyboards. Blending the most melancholy overtones with a sombre touch “The Great Unwashed” is another track where the band explores more modern sounds on keyboards. Original and full of innovative ideas, in the second part it offers guitar soloists of fine workmanship, in a prolonged instrumental section. The vocal has its own unmistakable trademark and the rhythm section is solid and adds power to the piece. “Heartless” is an energetic and engaging track that combines melodic traits and the power of Metal with accelerations in rhythm and continuous tempo changes. A track that evolves continuously, with a very interesting and well developed structure with harder strokes, which however leaves room for a more melodic and delicate opening in the second part. The song restarts and the band unleashes all its power with a valuable instrumental section in the finale, enriched by solo passages, to then return to the singing and close. An accelerated rhythm section and layered voices are the hallmarks of “Blindfolded,” a track that combines an elaborate structure and the power of Metal. The best vocal test of the disc in my humble opinion, while guitar and keyboards are intertwined with very technical and sometimes virtuous passages. The album concludes with the shorter running track “Wildfires” leaving us with a more delicate touch with guitar arpeggios and a softer, warm and expressive vocal. A good album, which shows once again how this band is among the best in the modern Metal scene, managing to find the right compromise between power and melody. The vocal is always an added value, fitting well into the songs, full of interesting and refined ideas and cues. A listening recommended for lovers of the more melodic sounds of Progressive Metal, those who know the band will find within the disc the sounds that have characterized it over the years.
Tracklist
01. Save Us (04:45)
02. Midwinter Calls (05:06)
03. Ominous (06:10)
04. Call Out the Dark (04:23)
05. The Orphean Testament (06:30)
06. Reawakening (04:15)
07. The Great Unwashed (06:03)
08. Heartless (05:09)
09. Blindfolded (04:13)
10. Wildfires (03:40)
Lineup
Tom S. Englund / Vocals, Guitars
Henrik Danhage / Guitars
Rikard Zander / Keys
Jonas Ekdahl / Drums
Johan Niemann / Bass