ALBUM REVIEW: Dead Elysium – Vanishing Point

Melbourne’s VANISHING POINT are veterans of the Australian metal scene. The five-piece have been active since the mid-nineties and released five albums of progressive power metal. Despite supporting everyone from BLACK LABEL SOCIETY to IRON MAIDEN to GAMMA RAY though, major international success has thus far eluded them. Dead Elysium is their sixth full-length and, in all honesty, probably won’t change that. It’s not going to harm their reputation, but this doesn’t sound like an album that’ll see their fortunes escalate.

That shouldn’t be taken as a bad thing though. Dead Elysium is most definitely not a bad album. In fact it’s rather good, it just seems destined for a niche audience is all. It’s an hour of soaring, bombastic power metal, reminiscent of bands like EVERGREY. VANISHING POINT don’t do the instant-anthems of SABATON, their tracks are long, complex and even a little intimidating. Its impressive stuff, but also thoroughly uncommercial. They won’t break out of the ‘diehards only’ circle of power metal with this, but it would be surprising if any of their current fans find much to complain about.

The first and most striking weapon they have in their arsenal is singer Silvio Massaro. His voice is distinctive and powerful enough that he probably doesn’t even need a microphone when playing live. The moment he first opens his mouth is the exact point that will make legions of metal singers quit because they’ll never be as good as that VANISHING POINT guy. He absolutely nails it on every song, handling fist-pumping rockers like The Fall as well as the lighters-in-the-air ballads like Salvus. It’s a phenomenal performance and no mistake.

It’s not a one-man show however as the other lads are equally skilled. James Maier and Chris Porcianko do a grand old job creating an eclectic mix of sweet guitar melodies and crunchy, power-chord rampages. They do wonders in creating a different vibe for each song. The title track for instance is a galloping, blood and thunder war cry, while Recreate The Impossible is dark and melancholic. With the intricate musicianship and booming chorus, it recalls SCAR SYMMETRY with the death metal turned off and is an engaging highlight. Throughout it all, new recruits Glaston Chin and Damien Hall make their mark on the rhythm section. They’re not flashy but compliment their new bandmates admirably.

So, excellent musicianship, good songs, what’s the problem? Well for starters, Dead Elysium is too long for its own good. Sixty minutes of dense power metal is too much. VANISHING POINT also don’t do subtlety, every note is turned up to eleventy-stupid and even the ballads are bombastic. It makes getting to the end in a single listen an exhausting experience and will probably turn off anyone who discovers them by clicking the ‘Fans Also Like’ button on POWERWOLF’s Spotify page.

In short then, VANISHING POINT are very good but definitely a niche group. On the strength of Dead Elysium, they’ll still be bagging support slots for every major band that goes down under for years to come. Hell, they’ll probably get invited to next year’s Masters Of Rock Festival as well. Playing headline shows at venues with a bigger capacity than five hundred people though? Forget about it mate.

Rating: 7/10

Dead Elysium is set for release on August 28th via AFM Records.

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