Apocalyptic Promenade

It's always a point of note when something new and ambitious comes out of the USA because it's a rare occasion compared to the glory days of the 80s, and even more so when the band is not borrowing members from European countries or even based in Europe in spite of its American membership. But that is essentially what Sonic Prophecy deals in, a highly ambitious mode of power-infused heavy metal after the Manowar model without actually being a contemporary of said band, and they make a solid showing of it. Their sophomore studio effort Apocalyptic Promenade boasts all of the usual cliche imagery to go along with the lofty images of battle-torn landscapes and fantastical creatures, but it cuts in more of an old school direction where atmosphere and heaviness take precedence over speed and technical showmanship, though this band proves to be no slouch when it comes to the more technically oriented detailing that comes standard with a traditional heavy metal approach.

The size and scope of this album is indeed massive, boasting over 70 minutes of music, mostly dispersed into epic length compositions that betrays an album trying to be Into Glory Ride on even more steroids. The primary place where things become a bit more distinct from the principle influence in question is the degree of symphonic detailing and the frequent employment of dueling guitar work, pointing at something a bit more comparable to the Iron Maiden influence on this approach on display in Sacred Gate's output or the last album put out by Bloodbound Stormborn. The production quality is correspondingly massive, maybe a tick or two behind what comes with a normal Rhapsody Of Fire release, and generally in more of a slow to mid-paced feel. Shane Provstgaard's vocals are likewise oriented in the stylistic direction in question, being gritty and punchy enough to pass for Eric Adams, but having a bit more of a smoother and leaner quality that is along similar lines to Jim Over and Tobias Sammet.

The band makes little secret of their epic tendencies, and makes a point of breaking with conventional wisdom on how an album should be structured right from the get go. The opening 12-minute saga " Oracle of the Damned / The Fist of God" sets the tone for the whole album with all the usual tricks of the trade from a haunting narrated prelude about the oncoming end of the world (a common theme in this style) followed by a heavy-ended hammer of a song to rival "Battle Hymns". The only real drawback here is that this massive opener turns out to be the best thing on here and kind of steals the thunder from the rest of the album, which would otherwise be almost as impressive. Things get a bit interesting on shorter numbers like "Eventide" and "Temple Of The Sun" where things have more of a faster, galloping feel after Maiden's Powerslave, but generally the flow of this album leads to shorter versions of the opener with varying degrees of acoustic/atmospheric balladry to heavy trudging metal, with "Born Of Steel And Fire" being among the best of the pack with its more driving feel and majestic melodies.

This is an album that falls just a tad short of being great due to being overambitious, as there are so many ideas floating around that it gets close to Gods Of War territory and occasionally loses the plot. There is a lot of raw talent on display here that could truly shine if it were honed a bit more, and with the recent dissolution of Sacred Gate, there is definitely an open market for this style of an album. Truth be told, apart from Provstgaard's raunchier sounding vocals and the frequent symphonic and folksy elements coming from the keyboards, this band has all the makings of the sort of post-Iron Maiden and post-Manowar tendencies that ended up birthing Tides Of War. It's definitely worth a listen, but one listen or even five probably wouldn't be enough to process everything going on here, and the sort of investment required is generally reserved to the hardest core fans of this particularly sub-style of power metal.

More tales of warriors, kings, legends and dragons? Yes please! Sonic Prophecy, a sextet of Americans, are forging their path through our beloved genre in their own way. Nothing they're doing may be considered particularly innovative or original, but then what is these days? However, some of their techniques and compositional devices are somewhat quirky, especially considering their nationality. One thing's for sure, their entry for 2015 is nothing if not huge! At a whopping 1 hour 13 minutes, Sonic Prophecy are making sure there is quality stashed somewhere in that quantity.

The production isn't quite spectacular - the guitar tone is a bit mellow, and a little engulfed by the bass (that's a first!). But fortunately, the folk instruments and Shane Provtgaard's mid-pitched vocals are well mixed. These two aspects are probably the stars of "Apocalyptic Promenade". Provtgaard has a warm, welcoming voice - and is able to portray a sense of storytelling through the fantastical lyrics. The folk instrumentation is a sheer delight, acting as the multi-coloured sprinkles on this cake of power metal.

Regarding their debut album, "A Divine Act Of War", this new effort has slightly dampened the conventions they had previously established; lacking such energetic hymns as "Call To Battle" or the crunching headbangers like "Heavy Artillery". On "Apocalyptic Promenade", the youthful vibrancy is missing and songs feel dragged out to far longer than they're worth. Circa 2011, you could confuse this band for a young Primal Fear, but circa 2015, they seem more like latter day Judas Priest. This is by no means a negative remark, but it does sap a little of the energy out of their songwriting.

There are plenty of positives scattered about this album though. Choosing to open your album with a 13-minute epic is a risky move, but "Oracle of the Damned/The Fist of God" is such a well-composed, structurally sound piece of metal, it proved a totally worthwhile decision. This helps set up the narrative characteristic of the album which, thankfully, holds steadfast throughout. The majority of tracks on "Apocalyptic Promenade" are mid-tempo and average around 6:30 each. The swaying waltz of "Legendary" and the brooding melodies of "The Warrior's Heart" are definitely the stand-outs that thrive in this structure.

Rather than an up-tempo gallop through a fantasmic land of dragons and warriors, this feels more like a calm amble across a meadow of long grass. A ... promenade, if you will? Nothing about it is unpleasant or outright bad - there are plenty of sweeping melodies and grandiose ideas. It would just be a refreshing change if they were to return to the celestial ways of their debut.