Melodic heavy metal augmented by female vocals has been one of metal’s key growth markets for a few years now; That market is saturated, to be sure, and it’s getting increasingly hard for bands entering the arena to find any sort of point of difference with which to stand out from the crowd.

Greece’s Elysion have been at the game for over a decade now, and they seem to have found a formula to at least keep their heads above water whilst many around them succumb and go under. At the heart of this is the ability to do the simple very well, and the fact that in vocalist Christiana Hatzimihali they have a very talented singer indeed…

Simplicity isn’t always a boon in the gloriously over the top world of heavy metal, of course, but here Elysion’s ability to keep things tight and taut pays dividends every time. Tracks like Crossing Over, Buried Alive and Far Away may not take many chances, it’s true, but they lodge themselves in the mind straight away thanks to the spartan construction of the songs. There are no bells, whistles, smoke or mirrors in evidence – just great melodies and clever singing and playing. And who is going to complain about that?

Not me, that’s for sure. No, I’m just happy absent mindedly grooving to As The Flower Withers, basking in the supremely sensual vocals and allowing the edgy guitars of Johnny Zero and Nid to prompt involuntary spasms of air guitar as and when. This is music that’s very easy to like, music that greets the listener like an old friend intent on sharing some good times and a few beers. And sometimes, in a world that seems to be getting darker by the day, that sort of feelgood factor is all you need.

Bring Out Your Dead Is Out Now