Triumvir

Now, Ladies and Gentlemen, as part of our Roman metal series, let me proudly introduce you to the last-born son of this (alas fictitious) genre: Triumvir, from New York, USA, which appeared on Bandcamp last summer and... and that’s all, really. Finding any extra information about this band, like, for instance, the identity of its member(s), would be hardly more difficult if we were dealing with a forty-years-old forgotten NWOBHM demo. It’s called Triumvir, so perhaps are there three of them, who knows. Besides, their few promotional pictures posted here and there seem to suggest they at least show some sense of humor, some light-hearted approach of ancient history, which isn’t unpleasant, considering how easily a dead-serious approach of such themes could fall into ridicule – some of our previous Roman encounters largely proved it. But, come the end of the day, all of this will be of little importance.

Because, light-hearted is not only their take on the Roman world, but also their take on heavy/power metal, which is more problematic. You see, everything here sounds gentle. Tame. Political correctness, the Roman fashion. In place of the grandiose historical fresco promised by the songtitles, full of ancient bravado and clashing swords (Cartago Delenda Est! Twenty Years in Steel! Roma Invicta!), we’re mostly left with a lecture about ancient Roman history, from the origins to Byzantine times. When the most exciting moment of your album may well be the introductory instrumental marching tune, which primarily consists in synthetic brass flourishes and samples, this clearly means something has been done wrong.

Something – still, not everything. The little work – 36 minutes – has its moments. Its most accomplished songs would probably have worked wonders as soft melancholic interludes amongst more ambitious, brilliant power metal tunes. The mostly acoustic semi-ballad The History of Rome, for instance, is likely to haunt the listener long after it’s gone, like an obsessive meditation about the passing of time, and the eventual fading of every past glory. Nothing is eternal; not even Roman empire. The singer boasts an interesting melodic middle range with a slightly nasal edge, reinforcing the melancholic undertones of his performance. Also note that although the band hails from the US, the strong emphasis set on keyboards and melodies makes it sound much closer to the typical europower sound, not a bad thing per se, but this is rarely synonymous of sheer aggressiveness.

No, you see, the problems really start when the tracks actually meant to sound epic, that is, the majority of the album, are basically as soft as the intended “soft” moments. It is already hard to develop a sense of heroism when your average song clocks at less than four minutes, it gets even harder when you keep this same quiet, disillusioned singing style all throughout; let’s all ride overseas and burn Carthage... but not before having scholarly read about it in our favourite history book. The drums, of which the metronomic mechanical pounding leaves little doubt about the fact they’re programmed, are often kept to the strict minimum, meaning they won’t compensate for the overall lack of vocal energy. It’s all the more a pity everything sounds so tranquil, than the guitar work in itself isn’t totally uninteresting, regularly looking further than standard power chord progressions – like this thrashy break towards the end of Carthago Delenda Est, the whole instrumental Walls of Ctesiphon, or these mid-eastern melodies in Jugurtha, nice homage to this cunning Numidian king. Delicate touches of what sounds like a lute, carefully sprinkled amongst the tracks, are another proof Triumvir isn’t devoid of musical imagination, though, once again, a lute isn’t exactly the instrument that will make your recording sound all fierce and epic...

... now let’s rather see the positive, that is, the Roman legacy is still alive and well in the 2020s. Triumvir, it seems, are already in the process of recording another album – while, as far as we’re concerned, we’ll move towards the next objective of our quest.

Highlights: Imperium et Gloria / Sons of the Wolf, The History of Rome, Jugurtha