Skyfire – Esoteric

Releasedate: 18-09-2009; Label: Pivotal Rockordings
By: Elvira Visser

Skyfire, Swedish progressive death metallers released a full-length album “Esoteric” after five years of silence. Skyfire was formed in the small Swedish town of Höör in 1995. With this album they also introduce two new members of the band: Joakim Karlsson for the vocals and Johan Reinholdz on guitars. They join standing members Martin Hanner (Bass, Keyboards), Andreas Edlund (Guitars, Keyboards), and Joakim Jonsson (Drums). The band hopes that with the new members, they deliver a strong performance not only on stage. The band says their music maintains melodic sensibility and attitude. As a listener you can expect the Skyfire sound but the band took the time to experience with different elements on this album.

The band found a good vocalist in Joakim, as he growls mid-range. Henrik Wenngren’s growls were more sharp but Joakim is good replacement. The guitar solos and even more the keys create that symphonic sound. Adding choir samples and even catchy melodies the music does not bore and stays rough. Tracks with a catchy melody are “Rise and Decay” and “Under a Pitch Black Sky”. “Darkness Descending” might be the most brutal track on this album which starts out with a choir and a fast pounding drums, sweeping keyboards with bombastic overtones and great riffs. “The Legacy of the Defeated” is also brutal at start but slows down a little but surely does not fail to impress. A nice album for those who love brutal metal with symphonic choirs and keyboards. Skyfire knows how to balance this and implements the symphonic aspects at the right time, creating good composed tracks. “Within Reach” is a bonus track, and is taken from the first Skyfire demo.

Links:
Skyfire MySpace