Premiere: Valyria – “Steel Inquisition”
It’s power metal AND death metal! This is the best thing.
Or at the very least it’s pretty damn good. Valyria aren’t just some weak Children of Bodom knockoff, nor are they trying to be Wintersun, or Soilwork, or any other band that has labeled themselves as “extreme power metal.” No, they actually take the soaring vocals of power metal, the constant riffing of melodeath, and the upbeat and empowering parts of both and successfully marry them in a way that very few bands have done before. Both vocal styles have strength behind them and are used in relatively equal measure, the riffs are all awesome and never let up, and most importantly, it’s just a lot of fun. I’m excited to help them bring you “Steel Inquisition,” the first single from their upcoming album, Into the Dying of Time:
Lyrically, it’s pretty much the swords-and-sorcery sort of thing you’d expect from a band named after a city from “A Song of Fire and Ice” and a lead single drawing inspiration from the “Mistborn” series. The band aims to create appropriately epic atmospheres to complement the subject matter; in their own words, “We hope our fans can escape from the chaos of everyday life and lose themselves within these musical stories and the feelings they represent.” Needless to say, I’m way into this on both a musical and aesthetic level. I could use a little bit of feel-good escapism these days, and I’m sure I’m not the only one.
Into the Dying of Time comes out on May 18th through Bandcamp for not a whole lot of cash. Be sure to swing by Facebook as well and drop them your mightiest “HAILS!”
