Review : Shane Smith
Hailing from Adelaide, Australia
symphonic tech metal giants Freedom of Fear are in full force with their sophomore album “Carpathia” with it’s 9 tracks (7 songs, 2 intermissions) packed tightly within 40 killer minutes.
Album opener “Zenith” kicks off all guns blazing!
With its blast beats, tech-death riffing and gloomy keyboards drawing you in before switching to full symphonic black metal with the arrival of Jade Monserrat’s savage vocal onslaught.
It’s this element of interchanging between these styles that makes Freedom of Fear so unique. The drums are fast, solos are blistering and whilst most of the song is lead by Monserrat’s black metal inspired shrieking vocals, the slower chugging outro shows that she is no stranger to performing in the lower death metal range.
The next few songs are just as ferocious, exploring further symphonic metal ideas with the epic title track “Carpathia” and even delving into their melodic death metal influences shown on “Primordius”, albeit with a ton of blast beats under Matt Walters and Corey Davis’s brutal dueling riffage.
It’s half way through the album with tracks like “Nebula” where the band prove they are top of their game. With its god-like opening lead guitar part and longer run time, it gives the band space to flex their musical wings and incorporate elements of melodic thrash and progressive metal, even leaving room for bass player Georgina Kittel and German tech-death drummer Hannes Grossmann to play their own solos.
Freedom of Fear are masters in their field. All of which is backed by one of the cleanest production’s I think I’ve ever heard on any metal release which cannot be understated.
I’ll admit to being a bit biased as I loved their last album but this is an incredible follow up that Freedom of Fear should be proud of and I cannot recommend enough.
Freedom of Fear – Carpathia is out October 21 via EVP Records.
FREEDOM OF FEAR
CARPATHIA TOUR
with
XENOBIOTIC & REMISSION
THURSDAY NOV 24 – WOOLLY MAMMOTH, BRISBANE – TICKETS
SATURDAY NOV 26 – VINNIE’S DIVE BAR, GOLD COAST – TICKETS
SUNDAY NOV 27 – FRANKIE’S, SYDNEY
FRIDAY DEC 2 – CROWN AND ANCHOR, ADELAIDE – TICKETS
SATURDAY DEC 3 – STAY GOLD, MELBOURNE
