As we grow older, it becomes harder and harder to leave our comfort zone; our melting brains become less open to new experiences. It’s not just my opinion; it’s what science says. In Ascending in Synergy, Elvellon offers me the opportunity to defy my cognitive decay and totally break out of that comfort zone made out of incomprehensible gargling and dissonant riffs. It can’t get more Power/Symphonic than Elvellon, but we’ll see how it holds up.
If you ever wonder what 90’s Nightwish would sound like if they had never made a transition into becoming a Pirates of the Caribbean tribute band, then this is the answer you were looking for. Ascending is so catchy that it hurts sometimes, in the sense that as a Metalhead, you might have troubles accepting that you’re enjoying something with this level of commercial sensitivity. That’s okay, I went to Catholic school, I know all about guilt and being an embarrassment for the community. It never goes away, but hey! We’re here to support you with dank music and writing!
Ascending mixes the feelings of wonder of a kid and the edge of a teenager who just found out Pantera was a thing back in the day. You’ll get potent riffs courtesy of Gelsdorg and Runkel’s strings, complemented by Klüners’ sticky beats and interesting melodic lines that truly work as ornaments for Cinderella’s magical night (Thanks, Pannen). However, Messerschmidt’s vocals are the ones that bring me back to ancient Power Metal times, to much more innocent times. On the cheese scale, where one is the plastic cheese you buy at the grocery store with a discount and ten is blue cheese imported from France and makes you feel better than anyone else, I’d say Elvellon sits at a five, it’s neither too serious nor too cheesy, so probably a Brie. From now on, there’ll be a cheese scale to assess how bearable a Power/Symphonic album is. You don’t want to get a 10.
Alright, time to reach midnight and break the spell, what’s the bad part? Well, Ascending isn’t exploring uncharted territories here. If you somehow are a hardcore Symphonic Metal fan (seriously, are you still alive?), Elvellon has prepared an album that will exploit your nostalgia harder than Disney does. You’ll remember for a second of joy and then return to the pain of fixing your radiator yourself because you can’t afford a professional. Also, the album is long, it wouldn’t be such a problem if it weren’t for the fact that most of the tracks follow a clear formula except “Last of Our Kind” and “The Aeon Tree”. Cutting away one or two tracks would’ve kept me more engaged.
Ascending isn’t going to convert any skeptics, it’s not going to make Death or Black metal fans believe in magic again, but it may give the naive young or the elders with some neural plasticity left something to have fun with. So, relieve happier times while you can.
Label: Napalm Records
Release date: 17 May, 2024
Website: https://www.facebook.com/ElvellonBand
Country: Germany
Score: 3.0/5.0
Metal Eclipse Reviews 