ALBUM REVIEW: The Magic of the Night – Vampiric
When it comes to blending gothic music with any form of extreme metal, there’s only a handful of bands that it could be argued have done it really well. You either find that the bands who attempt this either end up doing extreme metal with deep, mournful vocals and a keyboard that’s been set up to sound like a church organ, or a heavily gothic record that just happens to have some metal tropes thrown into the fray. In short, getting the balance between two contrasting styles can be incredibly hard to attempt, let alone perfect. One band that could be held up as an example of how to mix goth and metal together with excellent results are Phoenix’s VAMPIRIC.
A one man act that, despite only being formed about a year ago, have already managed to release an EP and an album, both of which showcase a distinct style that brings together thrash, black metal, goth and a few more subtle elements, making for a sound that not only has a lot of layers to it, but also sounds incredibly developed for a band that is still so early on in their career. You need look no further than their debut full length, The Magic of the Night, for evidence of this.
A Death In The Throne Room kicks the album off on a high note, with an excellent, hypnotic opening guitar section drawing the listener in immediately and making for a very solid opener. The use of keyboards really complements the disjointed hooks and ethereal vocals incredibly well, with the aggression of the guitars counterpointing the lighter approach of the vocals and keys to create a dark and driven piece of music, which sets the tone for the rest of the record quite well.
Vampire Blood proves to be a far more punchier than its predecessor, being significantly shorter and having a far more energetic and razor sharp sound that is built around thunderous drumming and tight, melodic guitars, which provide a great backdrop for the hazy vocals. The gothic elements are noticeably stripped back, although still there at certain points, but this proves to be a more straight forward track. The Full Moon Rising is another very strong track with some slick, impressive lead guitar hooks and soaring, orchestral keyboard sections carrying the sound throughout. There’s a ferocious thrash undercurrent that provides plenty of intensity to the sound of this song, without sacrificing any of the brilliant atmosphere that has dominated this album up until now. It’s another great offering with a lot of musical depth that serves to make this album’s sound even more diverse and eclectic.
Gothic, This Masquerade, another very lengthy slab of memorable and powerful thrash metal and gothic sections, makes full use of the keyboards, to great effect, with the guitars, drums and bass taking a slight back seat to the epic keyboard flourishes, which really elevate this from a good track to a great one. This isn’t to say that the guitars don’t make their presence known; with motifs ranging from fast and furious Thrash riffs to much more doom orientated, groove-laden ones, the guitars help to ensure that this long, sprawling effort remains interesting from the first note to the last. Of Bloodlust And Moon, a short, sharp shock of a song, is a focused and fierce piece of music with plenty of ambience giving this a large and engrossing sound. The music is extremely precise, making for a very tight and efficient track that doesn’t outstay its welcome, bringing the albums first half to a close very well.
Nosferatu is quite a frenetic and acerbic track, with the music having a sense of urgency to it that makes it all the more intense, and with the vocals beginning to take on a much more monstrous tone than they have prior to this point, with a few shrieks thrown in amongst the sonorous, haunting parts that have characterised the vocals up until this point. It may only be brief, but this song proves to be one of the records more aggressive efforts. The Witch continues in much the same vein, with more visceral vocal performances and incredibly intricate and forceful drumming giving this song a more robust and dense sound that immediately grabs the listeners attention. There’s plenty of thick, meaty guitar parts that add to the monolithic feel of this particular track, with the keyboards being decidedly more reserved than they have at any point on the record, allowing the rest of the music to carry the song on its own merit.
Carpathian Lycan Curse, the album’s penultimate track, is a vicious and lively slab of blackened thrash with lots of great gothic moments peppered liberally throughout. It’s a grandiose, yet rabid, song from start to finish, jumping between chaotic, riff driven sections to more mid tempo ones that are built upon full chords, steady drumming and well placed ambience courtesy of the keyboards. It’s a great song that sets the listener up for the final, titular track, incredibly well. This last track, spanning nearly eleven minutes, is a slow burning track that gathers momentum as it progresses. Starting out as an almost post-rock piece, interlaced with dense guitars, it becomes more intense and bombastic as it goes along, bringing in all the various styles that have appeared on this album extremely well. It’s a very eclectic track that jumps between the aforementioned soaring, grandiose passages and parts that are far more cacophonous and jarring, making for a great contrast that keeps the music engaging even as the track reaches its latter stages. The keyboards provide not only a great atmosphere, but also lots of emotive weight to the track, helping to set it head and shoulders above many of the songs that came before it. It’s a great, climactic song that brings the album to a close perfectly.
The Magic of the Night is a prime example of how to blend a variety of genres together correctly. There’s plenty of thrash and black metal influences on display here, with lots of hints of goth, melodeath and even post-rock spread generously across the music on this record, and at no point does it feel like VAMPIRIC is sticking to a rigid formula or going through the motions. Going from one song to another can take you into a very different style and tempo, and although the music does have a distinct sound underpinning it, no two songs are completely identical. It’s a roller coaster ride across a variety of sub-genres that is sure to have something for everyone on it.
Rating: 8/10
The Magic of the Night is out now via self-release.
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