Agony & Opium

Washington-based Christian Mistress seems to be generating a fair amount of buzz in the heavy metal underground with its brand of NWOBHM/traditional metal. Upon hearing the latest offering, Agony & Opium, I can say with a fair amount of certainty that you might be hearing more of this band sooner than later. . . or at least you should.

Agony & Opium is what it is: stripped-down, raw hard rock that has some early Eighties elements that render it something more than a passing novelty. Vocalist Christine Davis doesn’t have the bombastic air of a Tarja Turunen, but her style rests perfectly between Terry O’Leary of Leather Angel, the legendary Jinx Dawson of Coven and a subdued, though still effectual Bonnie Tyler, which is a tremendous treat from the usual array of operatic drivel that’s all-too boring now. The lack of females in that early NWOBHM movement is criminal, yet some three decades after the fact Davis comes and kicks open the doors once more.

Musically the band provides a dual guitar attack that calls upon some of the best that the early era had to offer, making them all the more viable some three decades later. Some of the more serious metal fans can hear Kill ‘em All in here, as well as some Saxon, Diamond Head and even Motorhead; the wide spectrum that is touched upon here is quite fascinating considering that I honestly did not hold out my hope for this album being very interesting, which is my fault for being so quick to judge. I love to be proven wrong in such cases. I can say with certainty that the testosterone-amped British scene would have had some competition in Christian Mistress and its powerful Christine Davis.

It’s great to see so many bands tapping into that reservoir of traditional metal and steering clear of the black/gothic style that has been ‘trend-pregnant’ for the last few years. No matter what seems to happen the old-school sound manages to escape the rancor of the young upstarts and the dollar-sign focus of the fat cats pimping out the latest commodity. Agony & Opium seems to be more centered on its brand of solid, casual metal that we oldsters like to ingest to break up our day now and again. It’s sort of like a Metamucil for the metalhead, if you will, and much like its powdery counterpart it does the job.

“Omega Stone”, “Home in the Sun” and “Black Vigil” are all exceptional, but to be serious there isn’t a weak track on here; as a piece the album rocks hard and offers no quarter if the straight-away sound is what you need to hear.

High recommendations here.

(Originally written for www.MetalPsalter.com)