DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present RAPTORE’s highly anticipated third album, Renaissance, on CD and vinyl LP formats.
From their humble beginnings in 2012, RAPTORE have risen to the top of the true metal pack in the intervening decade. The band’s roots started with vocalist/guitarist Nico Cattoni, originally hailing from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and his first lineup released their first demo in 2014 and then the debut album Rage N’ Fever in 2016, which allowed RAPTORE to tour South America and open for such bands as Exciter and Enforcer. Then, not being able to find suitable musicians for a steady lineup, Nico decides in 2018 to move to Europe in order to give his band better opportunities and recognition. He set base in Barcelona and completed the lineup with three of the most talented musicians in the scene. While they were booked for festivals such as Pyrenean and Trveheim, unfortunately, the pandemic delayed those concerts until 2022. Meanwhile, RAPTORE were brewing their breakthrough record, the full-length Blackfire. Eventually released during the summer of 2022 through DYING VICTIMS, Blackfire literally EXPLODED with an excitement that simply could not be contained – and the international metal scene took notice.
With the stage thus set, RAPTORE manage to magickally eclipse that feat with their third album, Renaissance. Truly titled, Renaissance is a tour-de-force of classic & classy HEAVY METAL steeped in all the black velvet and neon-lit chrome of the mythical ‘80s. So authentically rendered and passionately played, so rapturously engaging and dreamily transcendental, so simply AWESOME (and – again – explosive), it would not be remiss to suggest that RAPTORE somehow travelled through time and returned with a lost sacred scroll from 1986 or even 1989. Across its whip-tight nine tracks in 34 minutes, Renaissance spans a wealth of vintage metallic styles – smoothly cruising speed metal, Sunset Strip darkness, hard rock mysticism, juiced-up hair metal – and weaves them into a rich tapestry of moody & melodic metal that’s so silky and elegant at every turn, simple aesthetic pigeonholing doesn’t apply.
Granted, RAPTORE are very much (and always will be) a metal band above all, but their songwriting and textural coloring have grown impossibly more on Renaissance: by turns, a more “mature” and yet also more “fun” version of themselves. The stained-glass organ & synth intro opens the headspace for the focused eclecticism to follow; there’s a brightness to their attack that soon submits to the shadows – not straight-to-the-abyss “darkness,” but not peering away from it, either – and the deftly layered, powerfully HUGE production allows RAPTORE’s musings to take on an even greater and more personal emotional heft. So, while Renaissance could be likened to the underdog metal that clawed its way onto the radio during the latter half of the ‘80s, Nico & crew exude a daresay smarter sensibility to their catchier-than-ever anthems.
From masterclass to world class, RAPTORE are breaking the chains of their breakthrough record with that ever-crucial third album. How far Renaissance will go, we can only speculate, but it’s not unjust to suggest it stacks alongside other velvet metal classics like Don Dokken’s Up From the Ashes, W.A.S.P.’s Inside the Electric Circus, Whitesnake’s Slip of the Tongue, Warlock’s Triumph and Agony, the more serious moments to Slaughter’s Stick It to Ya, or even ‘80s KISS during theirs – as well as, of course, such cold-steel killers like Judas Priest’s Defenders of the Faith and Scorpions’ Blackout. Ready for this Renaissance?
LINE-UP
Nico Cattoni – Vox & Guitar
Jamie Killhead – Guitar & Backing Vocals
Cristian Blade – Bass & Vocals
Ángel Smolski – Drums
REVIEW
I was first introduced to RAPTORE with their 2022 triumph Blackfire, which has retained a steady presence in my playlist ever since, and a particular shoutout to the track “Demon’s Lust”. Needless to say, I was ecstatic to find this one in my inbox and couldn’t wait to get into my review.
Ecclesia was a brief little introductory number that featured a sweeping melody of keys, accompanied by an almost foreboding ambiance behind them, with a touch of whimsy. Like something out of a twisted children’s cartoon.
Satana was our first proper track, and one of the lead singles of the album. Right away, the thundering drums struck me like lightning. Vocally, it reminded me a bit of SKULL FIST. Up until the guitar solo, which was a proper facemelter, I felt like the song hadn’t quite entered second gear, but that all changed after it. The final leg of the track was a tour de force of metal goodness.
Abaddon had a more upbeat riff to start it off, and the guitars were really the shining star of this one. Every lick and strum had a purpose and a fury behind them. Seriously, the guitar solo in this one was just insanity. And once again, I found the drums like a stampede. While the vocals took a bit to grow on me for this one, by the end of the song I was stricken. Kudos to the fade-out ending.
Darklight began with a gnarly isolated guitar riff, with a very subtle acoustic guitar behind it. I must confess that by this point in the album, I was feeling like the vocals were a bit of an afterthought. Maybe it was the production or just my mood at the time, but it seemed like the guitars and drums, less so the bass, were shining above the rest.
Requiescat in Pace which instantly makes me think of Assassin’s Creed was next up. A much different feel in the beginning than the rest of the album up to this point, with what felt like an injection of glam-like melody into it. Now this was a track that I thought played to the bands strengths, giving each piece of the RAPTORE puzzle a chance to strut their stuff. The drums and guitars were great as per usual, but I really loved the groove the bass was bringing to the table.
Into the Bowels was next, and speaking of bass… sheesh. This track was all bass, not literally of course, but it was easily the most pronounced instrument present. On the flipside, I once more felt like the vocals were the weakest element of the song. In fairness though, what is being sung and the way it’s sung is good. Maybe it’s the production, I don’t know, but I wasn’t feeling them in this one.
Kingdom Come followed with a very SABBTH-inspired riff to start off, best on the album so far. In contrast to that doomy riff to start, the track itself had a bit more a speed metal flair to it. Love that harmony that began the guitar solo. If nothing else, this is a very guitar oriented album. Chock full of gnarly solos and tasty riffage.
Imperium continued that speed metal trend from the last track (also a nice quick little solo not long after the start). Like RIP, this one really played to RAPTORE’s strengths as a band, and featured probably my favorite vocal performance of the album. It was a true standout track for sure
All Fires the Fire was our final track, and while I have no idea what the track title means exactly, I was intrigued by the slow build of the intro. An almost SLAYER-like omen of fury, think like how ‘Dead Skin Mask’ opens. This one featured the most addictive, earworm-y chorus on the entire album, and quite possibly one of my favorite solos of the year. Again, kudos for the fadeout ending.
CONCLUSION
This was a bit of a tough one to grade for me personally. While I really dug all of the musicianship and the lyrics, I couldn’t help but feel that something was missing from the vocals, something that I didn’t feel on RAPTORE’s previous releases. If you like guitar-driven heavy metal with an occasional injection of speed and glam, then I’d say this one is for you.
TheNWOTHM Score: 7.5/10
RAPTORE‘s ‘Renaissance’ releases on 22 November, 2024
The Nwothm 
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