ALBUM REVIEW: Thorium – Thorium

Set to release their debut self-titled record this autumn are Belgian heavy metallers THORIUM. While the band themselves are new, three of their members come from OSTROGOTH – guitarists Tom Tee and Dario Frodo, as well as bassist Kurt “Stripe” Lawless, with the idea behind THORIUM to be a way of writing new material beyond the boundaries of their other musical ventures.

The debut record begins with March of the Eastern Tribe, an instrumental opener lasting around 90 seconds. It starts off with a simple drum rhythm before the inclusion of the guitars and bass, the riffs increasing in speed and complexity gradually to really set the atmosphere, ending with howling winds before kicking straight into the next track, Ostrogoth.

From the very first second, the powerful vocals of David Marcelis shift the pace up another gear, with his screams and the riffs increasing in speed yet again turning the gentle intro on its head and throwing itself head first into heavy metal. Once the screams fade and Marcelis begins to sing, there’s an air of Bruce Dickinson in his voice, only not as high pitched but just as powerful. Knowing the history of the band, the title of this track and the line from the chorus “We are the Ostrogoth” shows that this is in homage of their former band.

The next song on the album is Court of Blood, which begins with a choir singing in Latin to build up the rest of the track, before the riffs return. The rest of the track is a solid heavy metal track, again there are little things in it which are similar to that of IRON MAIDEN. Throughout the vast majority of the record a lot of the tracks are very similar, in the way they sound and are put together, so from just the opening two songs you know what you’re going to get and expect for the duration of the album.

There are subtle differences which make each one stand out from the other but the base recipe is pretty much consistent all the way through. That is until you reach the final track, Four by Number, Four by Fate. The track runs for almost 15 minutes and truly is something very different. It begins with a gentle acoustic opening, before going into a traditional heavy metal track – then slows back to the acoustic and then goes into a thrash style, which happens a few times throughout and really keeps you on your toes.

On the whole, this is a good debut record from THORIUM. The sound throughout is good, the band have been able to create their own identity and it has been put together well. The final track though will split opinion, especially considering the length of it and the number of changes in between. Despite this, THORIUM have done a solid job with the album, and for anyone who is a fan of their previous band OSTROGOTH, this is right up your street, and for those looking to expand their collection then it is well worth checking out.

Rating: 7/10

Thorium is out now via Empire Records.

Like THORIUM on Facebook.