Hollenthon - Opus Magnum

(Napalm Records, 8 tracks, 50 minutes, 44 seconds, Reviewed by Adam McAuley)

Egotistical symphonic metal with a flair for wanting to master techniques of epicness is present and brings a characteristically exciting sonic vibe that is interesting in how it grips the listener’s attention. It strengthens your relationship to an already great band, but makes you question whether they honestly could have done better when comparing the album directly to With Vilest of Worms to Dwell, for example.

Their specific approach on the album makes you wonder if they’re imposing any boundaries of maintaining a certain level of quality upon themselves as the Opus Magnus might suggest certain standards wanting to be upheld, but not a revolution in their sound by any means, which is something that strongly catches your attention here.

The ability to incorporate a keen classical flair is an aspect of the band that makes you want to strongly become attached to them in an ingenious manner. They have a method of incorporating horns and other instruments into the background in a way that makes them particularly appealing to people.

Along with this operatic vocals weave a bombastic flavour into the songs and make them stand out in a manner that makes them appealing. The melding of classical elements realistically with normal metal moments makes Hollenthon a strong out-being within the metal genre and one can see growth in these elements making us interested in the work.

In terms of incorporating a lyric aspect into their work we can see a sort of poetic style taken within epic stances and some mentions of dying to raise the overall standpoint of Hollenthon into a different level. This makes them feel like an elevated band in terms of using a strong style to go along with their already substantial music abilities and make them feel bloated because of it.

What are some of the standout elements that make one want to listen to this album with extreme interest. We can sense that “Dying Embers” brings your attention up with its acrobatic approach and makes you want to really listen to the band keenly much like songs like “Fire Upon the Blade” did in the past. Having standout tracks is a method of gaining the listener’s interest effectively.

Altogether, this album represents another splendid work for the band Hollenthon with songs that are about bringing together an extremely epic classical flavour towards their work, which makes them a particularly different band for the listener to fans of the metal genre. Fans of both the metal genre and the classical music genre should be able to relate to Opus Magnum from a stylistic standpoint and enjoy it equally although it takes a very small step down from the magnificent With Vilest of Worms to Dwell.