The Cult

Crystal Viper’s previous album ‘Tales Of Fire And Ice’ saw the band treading more melodic power metal waters. It could very well be a divisive album among their fan base, but I personally thought the refreshing take that album provided on the Polish band’s formula was exactly what they needed. ‘The Cult’ sees Crystal Viper moving back to their old school heavy metal roots a little, whilst simultaneously retaining the fresh, energetic character of ‘Tales Of Fire And Ice’. Coupled with some excellent songwriting, ‘The Cult’ is absolutely the perfect combination of everything Crystal Viper could be at the moment.

In a strange way, ‘The Cult’ is Crystal Viper’s trusted sound and surprising at the same time. How new drummer Cederick Forsberg mixed the album is partly to blame for that. Many bands that are proudly playing old school heavy metal tend to stick to a traditional recording approach very strictly, including things that have been greatly improved on since. Forsberg gave ‘The Cult’ a bright, modern bite, but without sacrificing any of the warm, natural power of the rhythm guitars. On top of that, there are tons of cool guitar melodies and possibly Marta Gabriel’s finest recorded vocal performance to date.

The compositions and arrangements of ‘The Cult’ appear to be ever so slightly more complex than the sound Crystal Viper is known for. Overall, the songs are still of the simple, but effective variety, aimed at having the listeners remember the melodies after hearing them only once, there is just a little more room for slightly busier middle sections this time around. These changes are subtle though and are highly unlikely to estrange any fans. If anything, the overall sound on ‘The Cult’ might just win the band back a few fans. I see no reason for anyone who enjoyed their debut to not like this album.

While ‘The Cult’ might be the most consistent Crystal Viper album to date, I do have a slight preference for the uptempo material. ‘Down In The Crypt’, the title track and the so eighties that it hurts ‘Forgotten Lands’ are chock-full of fantastic riffs and memorable lead guitar themes all over the place, guaranteed to put a smile on the face of anyone who likes traditional heavy metal as much as I do. Some of the more epically arranged material, such as ‘Flaring Madness’, ‘Asenath Waite’ and ‘The Calling’, works wonders for the album’s sense of dynamics, however.

Ultimately, ‘The Cult’ is a very difficult album to turn off after you have turned it on, because it just makes you want more of what it offers; the mark of a great album in any genre. In a metal scene full of bands where musicians try to outdo each other, it is always great to hear an album where every musician just tries to bring what is best for the songs to the table. Heavy metal albums this unpretentiously fun, but musically impressive are rare enough these days and Crystal Viper deserves all the praise they can get for doing exactly that.

Recommended tracks: ‘Down In The Crypt’, ‘The Cult’, ‘Forgotten Lands’

Originally written for my Kevy Metal weblog