Canadian metal troupe Gatekeeper offer up a nice variation on the traditional metal blueprint with new album From Western Shores; they offer enough by the way of progressive embellishment to stop the album from just becoming a nostalgiafest, whilst still never forgetting the old Gods that have inspired so much fantastic music down the years. A such, you could probably label it as a perfect synthesis of old and new school metal…

At times the slightly brittle-sounding production keeps the band from fully attaining their obvious ambition, but that minor complaint is really the only fault I can think of. The singing, courtesy of new vocalist Tyler “Tex” Anderson, is clear but power-packed; he’s got a nice personality in his voice that sometimes reminds your reviewer of greats from the past like Jon Oliva and Eric Adams without actually sounding like either. In a similar way, lead guitarist Adam Bergen has all the tricks (his playing on standout cut Nomads is absolutely brilliant) but comes across as very much his own man here. It’s a hard trick to pull off in 2023, what with heavy metal’s rich and ever-growing heritage, but Gatekeeper harness the sound without ever really resembling any of the greats of traditional heavy metal.

Twisted Towers is the band at their most direct and engaging, powered by some adept stickwork from Tommy Tro (as well as another finger-popping solo from Bergen), but to my tastes the band is at it’s most potent on the more complex material. In this area, Tro engages with bassist David Messier and rhythm guitarist/band instigator Jeff Black to anchor things superbly on the title track and the marvellous Exiled King, with the band giving a hint that they really have no trouble at all coming up with material as complex and satisfying as these tracks and other epics like Desert Winds.

From start to finish on From Western Shores Gatekeeper prove that they are a traditional metal force to be reckoned with, both now and moving forward. Exciting stuff!

Gatekeeper’s From Western Shores releases on March 24th.