NOVERIA – Risen
- by Matt Coe
- Posted on 17-06-2014
Italian progressive metal lives again through Noveria on their debut album "Risen". We have a quintet on this 9 track effort that rivals a lot of the content not only of their domestic brethren but also some of the latest records from Symphony X. Masterful vocal prowess from Frank Corigliano, spirited keyboard lines of a neo-classical variety by Emanuele Casali and this driving sense of energy out of all five musicians makes standouts of the double bass fueled "Downfall", slightly darker/ mysterious "Fallen from Grace" (where there are some cool Evergrey-like off-time guitar chops on display) and the intriguing virtuoso meets power display for "Waste" that features some extreme background vocals at times for heightened dynamic contrast.
I believe people who have followed the careers of DGM, Eldritch, and Empyrios will love a lot of this material – and those who need that neo-classical keyboard/ guitar duels topped by a powerhouse vocalist. "Risen" could be one of the debut progressive metal releases for 2014.