ALBUM REVIEW: Celestial Vision – Mystfall
Things move fast in the world of MYSTFALL. The Greek symphonic metal band formed earlier this year, signed a multi-album deal with Scarlet Records soon after, and, following on from a couple of promotional videos, are releasing their first record – and it’s only July. It’s therefore easy to forget this is a band still in its embryonic state, albeit one with much to be proud of already. They arrive draped in the sounds of their biggest influences, drawing heavily from the likes of XANDRIA and EPICA, especially in lead vocalist Marialena Trikoglou who sits comfortably in a relatively high register throughout. She is currently the band’s biggest selling point, guaranteed to appeal to the genre’s purists who prefer an operatic tinge, and the strength of her vibrato never loses potency across these nine tracks (eight proper, one swooping intro).
Everything around Trikoglou attempts to keep pace with her by out-bombasting everything else every 30 seconds. Opener Resisting Heaven goes full Hans Zimmer at least twice, before the title track heralds in a choir powerful enough to go toe-to-toe with its cinematic string section and barrelling bass drums. The band say they combine “the traditional symphonic metal sound and atmospheres with an enthralling melodramatic approach” and they aren’t wrong: Celestial Vision is as dramatic as the end of the world. On highlight Centuries, the energy is nothing short of bold throughout, each passage as loud as the last. On The Balance Of Time, the syncopated beat spotlights the band’s majesty as the music slows and the full force of their symphonic edge is given space to take flight. It is an attention-grabbing listen; their firing-on-all-cylinders approach makes the record’s 41 minutes pass in no time.
What makes Celestial Vision good rather than great is the unavoidable comparisons to established acts from across the symphonic metal genre. Kings Of Utopia is a real standout song – its chorus will get stuck in your head for weeks – but its riffs bear strong resemblance to modern-day EPICA. There are shades of early DELAIN in Moral Compass’ motif, and Centuries owes much to XANDRIA. In doing so, the band demonstrate strong songwriting chops while working in other artists’ palettes. But – and it is worth repeating – this is a band formed in 2023 who have likely bonded over their shared love of these acts. Straight out of the gate they have shown themselves more than capable of hanging with the big hitters; now it is a case of finding their own identity among the upper echelons of the genre.
If there is a chink in their armour, it is in Kostas Mexis’ death metal vocals. Symphonic metal’s beauty-and-the-beast trope requires more than just two opposing voices, and here, they often feel like an afterthought, never featuring in any song’s best moments. His delivery is aggressive but accessible, tonally on the money for MYSTFALL’s music, but his passages often feel shoehorned in out of necessity and not because the song called for it.
But considering all they have achieved in such a short window of time, it is hard not to feel excited about MYSTFALL. This is a strong collection of songs, which with any luck will act as a blueprint and foundation for whatever comes next as the band seek out their identity. Now we know where they have come from, it is back over to them to take us somewhere new.
Rating: 7/10
Celestial Vision is set for release on July 21st via Scarlet Records.
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