The Cypriot heavy metal warlords return with another killer concept album titled “Temple of the Serpent”, which chronicles a journey to the lands of demonic djinns and undead sorcerers, and where Solitary Sabred explore the fall of the Akkad Empire over ten blistering tracks of furious epic metal. 

Solitary Sabred have been an active band since the early 00’s  and have released three full-length albums to date, including their critically acclaimed second and third albums, “Redemption Through Force” and “By fire & Brimstone”, which have been repressed numerous times both on cd and vinyl.

The Cypriots have also been active on the live front, appearing alongside legends such as Omen, Manilla Road, Helstar, Jag Panzer, Vicious Rumors, Metal Church, Heir Aparent etc, as well as contemporary acts such as Sabaton, Enforcer, Three Tremors, Ashes of Ares and many more, both in Cyprus and abroad, and are currently working on a full European tour to promote “Temple of the Serpent” live early next year.

Line-up:
Petros “Asgardlord” Leptos – Vocals
Demetris “Spartacus” Demetriou – Guitars
Nikolas “Sprits” Moutafis – Guitars
George “Stainlesz” Papaioannou – Bass
Fotis “Defiler” Mountouris – Drums

REVIEW

The Hellenic portion of the heavy music universe is a true constellation of numerous acts and renowned artists from decades to come and still keeps producing fine young breed of bands to fill in the ranks and answer the battle cry.  Cypriot scene may lack the scale of the mainland archetype and we seldomly recall the name of some local heroes, nevertheless on the beautiful island are stationed some stunning examples of classic metal mastery. In that category one can encounter SOLITARY SABRED, a quality quintet conceived in the brink of the 21th century, to thrive to these days, leaving a notable trace of three full-length albums, up to the point where we find them now, delivering their fourth creation – “Temple of the Serpent”. Foreseen to be released in mid-December 2023, the ten-track tale prolongs the conceptual storytelling approach of its two predecessors – “Redemption Through Force” and “By fire & Brimstone” and while the thematic leitmotif goes sideways, the musical stylistics and the production construct are following similar paths.

I confess It was my first encounter with the band and unlike some of their more modern compatriots, there is plenty of info and recordings out there, to inspire you going further down the rabbit hole of exploration and discovery. And while the debut by the name of “The Hero The Monster The Myth” clearly falls short of values, the sophomore “Redemption Through Force” is miles ahead in the development of the band, surprisingly becoming an instant favourite and outstripping the third “By fire & Brimstone”, brought to an existence in “2020, at the peak of the pandemic pandemonium.

So far with the background retrospectives and time to totally turn our attention towards the album opener – “Echoes from the Tomb”, a short and horrifying intro, casting curses in unknown language from the underworld, calling a tornado of unholy forces, promising to make our hair stand on end for the whole duration of that dark saga. Right after that we get hit in the face with the first real banger “The Skeleton King”. It’s a short and fast song, you take almost in a single breath, a song sharpening the senses, pointing just the tip of the iceberg drifting on the horizon. What immediately attracts attention is the exquisite vocal orchestration and the musical intonation, which calls for distant reminiscence with the early days of ICED EARTH. Despite running for under three minutes, this one is a mouth-watering appetiser, from the type you can enrich with few more ingredients or leave it more on the fire to excel into a refined delicacy.

“Spectral Domain” is engaging with a more moderate pace and spectacular instrumental intro, stepping a level down from the primal aggression of its predecessor. Here we encounter more cultivated singing, dialoguing back vocals and duelling guitarwork to culminate in a really invigorating composition. In the bridge part the band introduces for a first time more oriental musical motives, putting exotic vibe of mysticism and dark desires, to get completely wiped out by the ending chorus in a cataclysmic clash as if a sand storm engages on an avalanche. The deeper I get in the essence of this album, the more nuanced creative ideas and diverse artistic directions emerge, making hard to predict what to expect in the next riff, verse or chorus – an exciting sophistication that makes you wonder what delights will the next track bring. Just second of silent hesitation, before the scraping intro of “Bound by the Lich” removes the romantic rust from our ears and a piercing demonic laughter cuts the air. Vocally the initial verses stay as close as possible to the KING DIAMOND school of singing, changing high pitches to deeper lines over and over again to manipulate the listener into believing there is some kind of supernatural conjuring of voices conspiring and putting us under a veil of delusion. Not a single piece of doubt is left at this point, about the fact that SOLITARY SABRED has taken us on a conceptual journey in a fictional world of mystical monsters and scary creatures, feeding on superstition and hungry to devour our sanity.

            As we gradually start losing our minds, а dose of appeasing serenity is injected in our veins with the short form vocal interlude “Lament”. A blessing or a curse, revelation or damnation, the 90 seconds of wicked howling turn to be a straightforward runway for “Flight of the Banshee “, mercilessly clearing the path for another condemned creature to unleash its wrath. Looking without fear of favour, I find this song bit awkward or too fragmented to say the least. Feels like composed from self-sufficient pieces which isolated sound pretty descent, while stitched together result in this anamorphic composition compound, that is almost impossible to classify. In its essence, carries all the default elements expected to be heard, yet combined in a non-conformist manner, provoking interpretations of all sort. What is indisputably true is that the iconic chorus of the song by far “saves the day” and it’s the structural landmark that holds together the entire song.

            Banshees are notorious for their posthumous squealing, piercing the soul, bringing much of their grim reputation of vile creatures. “The Undead Cry for Vengeance” directs the musical vibe towards more epic territories, pushing the energy levels higher than before.  In this one the band is painting the depictive landscape of a continuous saga, with almost theatrical proportion, all done with a remarkable instrumental craftmanship, reinforced with vocal variety, changing tempo and exotic arrangements. Those peak in the bridge in which the listener gets the compulsive sensation of buzzing swarm, masterfully recreated by SOLITARY SABRED – a clear claim what level of artistic skills they have developed for more than a decade of existence. “Lord of Ganzer” appears as a natural sequel of the preceding track, both musically and thematically. We’re already witnessing the narrative climax and unfolding the plot of the saga to the maximum extent. This inevitably means sacrificing the default structure of the average metal tune, introducing tons of recitative and opera style orchestrations, demonstrating imagination and variety of expression, unmatched in the album to this point. Taking course to closure, really starting to wonder is this the epitome of the release or just a stepping stone to an even more monumental epilogue?

            What turns to be certain is that in terms of quantity, the band surely saved the best for last. To be more precise – the longest for last. The final pair of tracks are not only the final touch in the plot development, they also happen to be with the maximum duration. Funny enough, if we look on the song list as a whole, the deeper we delve – the lengthier composition we encounter.  Maybe or maybe not this is done on purpose, yet funny enough the album has a clear pyramidal structure when it comes to time span. “Reaper of Kur” marches proudly and heavily, slowly building layer after layer of thick guitar sound. Once more the guys do a brilliant job painting a vivid musical picture, this time with naval thematic. The cut off pace in the chorus mixed with the background sound of waves in the bridge, teleport the listener on a boat with a crew of sea scoundrels that rows relentlessly in fanatical rhythm, as if the faith of their souls depends on that. Тhe final chords are spiced with high-speed drumming, complemented by “hammer and anvil” sound effects, probably coming from some infernal forge.  Kettledrums and exalted fanfares set the tone at “Gates of Namtar” as we approach the final stop of our journey. The sound of this tailpiece is rich, symphonic and as fragments pass one after another, the resemblance to the iconic VIRGIN STEELE is getting hard to ignore. With hand on heart, I confess my gut feeling turned to be true – this closer is by all standards the flagship song of the release. То classify it as the most epic will be an understatement. Much rather could be qualified as a hymn of dominance, marked with distinct power-progressive hues, an amazing sing-along live banger, amplifying all the passion and enthusiasm of a crowd, mesmerized and dizzy from the extasy of pinnacle reached. And the circle must go on…

CONCLUSION:

 From my very early age of metal fanhood, I always had a thing for conceptual albums and the worlds they reproduce in the listener’s mind. It’s equally important to come up with captivating story and reincarnate it in an engaging musical embodiment, capturing audience mindshare for years if not decades. Some of the biggest masterpieces of the genre have emerged and even kept evolving on around continual idea or abstraction, sometimes reaching extremes of forming entire creative universes.

In that context SOLITARY SABRED have completed their mission in a most invigorating manner and in my humble opinion, after getting familiar with their whole discography the forthcoming “Temple of the Serpent” comes closest to their seminal creation – “Redemption Through Force”.  The essence of the story is quite divergent, the journey however is corresponding to the mature level of creative development the band has reached two albums later. Worth mentioning the way the album is produced and another kudos to those responsible for getting such exquisite result. Raising the stakes in studio, imminently drags curiosity about the formation’s abilities on live stage and hope the festivals in 2024 provide the opportunity to verify that. Till then, certainly will cross again the borders of the Akkad Empire to immerse in the delights of this utopic world

TheNWOTHM Score: 8.5/10

SOLITARY SABRED:
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