Label: AFM Records
Release date: 2/25/2022
Production: Mario Lochert
Album length: 52.21 min
Genre: Power Metal
Rating: 8.5/10
Serious Black are the German power metallers who started out with drummer Tomen Stauch (ex-Blind Guardian) and Roland Grapow (Masterplan, ex-Helloween), two icons of European power metal, who ditched the band the moment it was time to hit the road for the first tour. Still, Serious Black set sail into the metal world anyway, and even though power metal has been creatively oversaturated for years, they managed to win over a nice crew of followers, since the first three albums, and especially the first two, are the very definition of high quality. Serious Black (obviously a pun lifted from the mysterious character in the Harry Potter saga) are now back on the scene with their fifth album, “Vengeance Is Mine”. After the somewhat pallid and creatively lackluster predecessor “Suite 226”, which suggested the crew had lost momentum and was running out of fuel, the new album sets that right with a strikingly vivid impression.
Now, “Vengeance Is Mine” brings some major changes. On vocals, the (always ‘moody’) Swedish singer Urban Breed has been replaced by the Serbian ‘screamer’ Nikola Mijić, who is well known in our parts for his work with the Serbs Alogia, and who has also been singing with British melodic metallers Eden’s Curse since 2013 (with one short detour in between). And there’s more. With newcomer Mijić, Greek phenomenon Bob Katsionis has also returned to the lineup, picking up guitar and keyboards again, just like he once did with Firewind, among others.
Nikola Mijić is an excellent choice, and when it comes to picking a new singer, Mario Lochert, the bassist and band boss, couldn’t have had a luckier hand. He’s explosive and commanding in the chorus melodies, which he cashes in on especially in the punchy ballad The Story, where he easily reaches the heights and power of a Michael Kiske. But Mijić is also seriously crafty when it’s time to tighten the vocal cords and add more grit to the very color of his voice, which pays off especially in the parts of the album that need more darkness and theatrical drama in the songs.
The production is polished. It IS typical of the German approach to power metal. It embodies the German principle. The guitars sit gleaming up front, while an atmospheric backdrop of synths in the background boosts the epic feel of the songs. Songwriting-wise, the band was bursting with inspiration this time. If “Suite 226” served up a few ‘unexpected musical adventures’, “Vengeance Is Mine” is, at its core, very, very classic power metal. So the guys have reconnected with the first two albums and upgraded it all with newfound maturity. Songs like Ray Of Light, Tonight I’m Ready To Fight, or Senso Della Vita practically compete over which one will steal the spotlight in the definition of chorus pomp. With Katsionis in the lineup, Serious Black are incomparably stronger. The material on the new album proves that too. Especially when it comes to songwriting. A whole bunch of anthems has genuinely nailed that smoothly flowing build-up along the chorus-(pre-chorus)-chorus line this time. A song like Soldiers Of the Night can unite fans of Avantasia, Rhapsody of Fire, and Masterplan under one roof. European power metal fans in general. Out Of The Ashes is an example of a typical Euro metal basher. The song is a carefully carved songwriting homage to fellow countrymen Gamma Ray.
A minor minus is, once again, the sheer number of songs. There are thirteen of them, which means the guys could have saved at least three for the next album. Still. Obviously the band loved everything it wrote and felt the need to present all of it. The power metal recipe gets saturated quickly, since the boundaries of its songwriting template are strictly set. But plenty of bands in this genre fall into that trap these days. Yes, you may have already figured it out yourselves: the album loses some steam here, and the dynamics of how things unfold drop below the otherwise high bar it sets.
Whichever way you look at it, “Vengeance Is Mine” is one of the best Serious Black albums to date. In terms of polished arrangements and working ideas into the songs, definitely. So? Now that the band is consolidated around an excellent new voice, and with this superb latest achievement, it’s clear that Katsionis has to stay in the Serious Black lineup for good.
Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Track list:
01. Rock With Us Tonight
02. Out Of The Ashes
03. Fallen Hero
04. Senso Della Vita
05. Ray Of Light
06. Soul Divider
07. Tonight I’m Ready To Fight
08. Just For You
09. Soldiers Of Eternal Light
10. The Story
11. Queen Of Lies
12. Album Of Our Life
13. Alea Iacta Est
Lineup:
Nikola Mijic – vocals
Bob Katsionis – guitar, keyboards
Dominik Hindinger – guitar
Mario Lochert – bass
Rami Ali – drums
