Flame – Ignis Spiritus

Band: Flame
Title: Ignis Spiritus
Label: Primitive Reaction
Release date: August 21, 2020
Country: Finland
Format reviewed: High-quality Digital Recording

So, tragedy struck this week as I found out that my original pick for a review had already been taken…a month ago… way to keep up! So I was robbed of the delightful melodic death band I had previously chosen and instead had to go for something else. The Finnish group Flame happened then to come across my way with their new upcoming EP “Ignis Spiritus” scheduled for a release later this month. I’m certainly not sad about how things turned out at all, just so that is clear.

“Intro”, so originally named, starts out with some weird noises and voices. The hope is that it is building up towards something, like so many other intros before this one, but so far there is no telling what sort of genre this group goes for. “Firespirit of Rebellion” answers the question however and it crosses no one by unnoticed that this is old school blackened thrash with the obligatory Finnish melodic feel. The production is quite harsh, even though it sounds much more modern and digital then what usually is the case with these old school sounding bands.

It wouldn’t be Finland without howling wind as “Primordial Storm” starts out with exactly that, but before long it is riff o´clock with blast beat, early Cronos vocals and those Kill ´em all sounding toms. For people who know me it would feel easy to answer the question of why I like it; for nostalgic reasons. But no, I actually liked it because it was just pretty damn good.

“Astral Crypt” is as evil as it gets. It starts out a bit slower but before you know it you are off on a speeding carriage ride pulled by the four horsemen of the evil-fast-paced metal. Oh and there is a moaning woman in there too, not that I know anything about what to say about that, I don’t think I’ve heard something like that before in the music I have reviewed in my lifespan. As the last track, “Force and Fire”, comes around you realize that this group has managed to not fall into the trap of getting too attached to their own formula while doing this sort of old school riff based metal. The songs are quite distinguishable from each other, fresh and yet familiar. The last one gives the listener a little bit of everything from the group as well as being packed with evil melodies and riffs. Blackened thrash for party people and forest dwelling grumpy dudes with invisible orbs alike. 8.5/10 Julia Katrin

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8.5/10 : To Greatness and Glory!
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