Urne - The Mountain Of Gold

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Hailing from London and rising up from the ashes of their now defunct previous band HANG THE BASTARD, URNE are offering their debut EP titled "Mountain of Gold." Joe Nally and guitarist Angus Neyra have several years playing together in HANG THE BASTARD," but also in CHAPTERS, a more Progressive Metal project. Adding the skilled drummer that is Richard Wittshire, all is set up to produce a massive groovy and intense metal band. The first single which is also the first track was shot on video and is called "Dust Atlas.” At first, the song may sound too versatile and an overwhelming mix of genres tending to make us wonder if they know where to head, but after hearing it completely I now understand that they’re only showing us a sample of their mighty potential, especially on their full length album yet to come out. The video was made with the help of Andre Cecil in a dark basement in Croydon. Ranging from SLAYER-esque riffs, mixing sludgy harsh vocals and clean vocals to a very catchy melody, they are promising us a great journey ahead.

The second track is called "Lady and the Devil ".This one really hooked me. I really dig the clean vocals here, with a haunting chorus echoing in my head at work for about three consecutive days. It is teamed up with killer riffs and moving solos. Definitively my most memorable and favorite vocals so far. Singing harmonies are very appreciated, keeping me satisfied and wanting more. This is so good while not complex at all. Just plain good accomplished effort. Now let’s see for the third track. The production kills (Josh Middleton’s ARCHITECTS) and engineered by Craig Reynold from STRAY FROM THE PATH, did a majestic job. This one is groove and headbanging ready. They have harsh vocals reminiscent of the Hardcore or Sludge genre but the clean are more very sharp and spacy reverb filled. Like in so many Space Prog oriented or Progressive Metal. The guitar work is quite impressive and well done. We have an amazing rhythm section mixed up with inspired solos. Pretty strong song !

"The March Towards the Sun" starts it out with a Melo-Death approach, structured composition, reminding me of THE CROWN, THE HAUNTED, and AT THE GATES. Yeah! Once again, the solos are making the song whole and really interesting. Many variations in the guitar play makes this  track entertaining and a success. The second part of the song is more relaxed, cooling down slightly and smooth to lead to a faded out finale…. Good Work!

Songwriting: 9
Originality: 8
Memorability: 8
Production: 8