幻の聖剣

Coming off the Galneyrus-inspired shredder of a debut – with the occasional nod towards Fiction-era Dark Tranquillity of all bands – Phantom Excaliver unleash 幻の聖剣 (henceforth referred to as The Phantom Holy Sword since that’s the English translation I’m getting for it). From here, it seems like they’re extending beyond the fiery fretwork of the debut… by having more overtly heavy metal and melodeath songs accompanying the power metal. Despite how dismissive I might be coming across as there, The Phantom Holy Sword is a considerable improvement over the fun shredfest that is Oath of Steel in the sense of adding a bit more to proceedings and tightening up the songwriting to add some power to their blend of power metal.

After the anime opening-esque “Large Flight Golden Eagle”, we’re heading into what seems like more of the same from before with “The Phantom Holy Sword”’s upbeat riffs and over the top lead/solo barrage. However, there seems to be something different to it compared to much of what was on the debut. Like, it still shreds like a thresher and the solos are still white-hot, and they still coalesce towards the same sort of kicking power metal compositions. But then you get to the chorus and it sounds like they figured it out. Matsu’s vocals – of normal Japanese power metal style – stand out more and the instrumentation amplifies its glorious nature with its cascading composition behind it.

In general, the choruses do seem to be much better as these general principles apply to them all throughout, whether they’re more anthemic in nature, particularly uplifting or massive in their approach, especially as the vocals have more of a presence here. As a result, the songs just seem generally better here. But that’s not all. Whether it’s the bouncy “Texas Fantasy” that I could swear was hot for teacher, the relatively more ordinary heavy metal stylings of “Pure Metal Magic” or the Dark Tranquillity-esque “Fighting Spirit” and “The Rebellion”, it’s clear that they’ve been working on tighter songwriting. Even when they aren’t going so over-the-top like they normally have been, they can still pull off a right melodic jaunt. In general, they have some strong riffs constructing equally strong melodic parts that manage to build from one another to create strong overall melodies that make for captivating and addicting power metal. This translates excellently into the more Galneyrus-ian shreddy power metal that still has the fire and the fury of old, but with the added tenacity of their stronger songwriting skills. This is even considering that Phantom Excaliver have just one guitarist, but it’s more like this virtuoso that provides more than enough energy to power a small village. It’s a pretty strong effort, I must say.

From here, I’d love to give this album a very high rating and happily recommend you, the reader, go check it out. But there is this giant asterisk looming over this entire album. That, my friends, are Kacchang’s vocals. It’s a shame because he does seem like a charismatic band leader and it clearly shows through the sheer enthusiasm in his vocal inflections, which carries the same energy as the compositions. It would seem like it’s because of his vocal choice – those being of the kinda melodeath growling/metalscore shrieking variety – but not necessarily. Having metalcore screams over Galneyrus-styled power metal is a big risk as there’s a fine line between amplifying the energy of the riffs and being so ill-fitting that it’s like oil and fuckin’ water. His actual technique – what he produces, not just what he puts in – does cross that line. Even with (and maybe even because of) a more prominent presence as this album leans further on the harsh verses/clean chorus formula than the debut, his abrasive, throaty screams wind up where Matt Heafy’s screams were in Trivium’s Ascendancy as they wind up more distracting and kinda annoying than driving and amplifying, and that’s what keeps this album from reaching the zenith that it possibly could.

It’s a shame about the vocals because everything else here on The Phantom Holy Sword makes for some rather fun, invigorating power metal of a high order. I absolutely love the over-the-top nature of its compositions, and them conjuring up some tight and captivating melodies gives it quite an edge. Still… fuck it, this album’s still quite a good one, just with a bit of a caveat attached to it.