Swiss progressive metallers, Alchemists, have a new album out in Chapter One Love. The sound of Alchemists has been described as like a jam session between members of Periphery, Meshuggah and Northlane. I think that description sums the sound up quite nicely.
The band is comprised of guitarist Marc Chevalley (ex-Make Me A Donut), bassist Yoann Maillard (Path Of Desolation), drummer Thomas Giroud and vocalist Julen Ibarrola (Ex-Buried Skies). Their unique and powerful style incorporates musical influences from death metal, progressive metal and hardcore. The songs are complex and aggressive, yet they have an element of melody throughout.
The album is definitely an interesting concept. The first four songs are brutal, with a host of signature changes throughout, my head is spinning with the amount. Bass is prevalent in this album, which makes for some great sounding lines that drive the songs.
At the fifth song, Venus on Fyre, we are taken on a psychedelic, keyboard laden instrumental which seems odd and out of place in comparison to the rest of the album. Oma Trees and Frontiere return to the brutal sound, though this is interspersed with keys and synths. There are some melodic interludes within the songs that give it interest.
The final song, About Amber, is the best song for me in structure and is also significantly longer than all others on the album at over seven minutes long. The album clocks in at about thirty five minutes, and it is a relatively short, sharp affair. Overall vocally, this is not really my cup of tea but there are enough chops on show and hooks in the music to keep my interest.
The band’s debut album Chapter One: Love was produced by Martin Gronnier (The Dali Thundering Concept), mastered by Pierrick Noël (Kadinja, Klone) and was released on March 27th via Tenacity Music.
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