In 2021 we had the pleasure of reviewing the split album “Visions of Esoteric Splendor” of Ezra Brooks and Serpent Rider. After this long four year hiatus, here we have Serpent Rider again with their debut fulll-length “The Ichor of Chimaera,” which, to some extent, is a kind of following of the previous work. Well, no one can say it lacks musical coherence to the band. Serpent Rider showcase the same influences of Epic and Old School Heavy Metal with the same prone to grandness. Here, I would say there are some hints of Doom Metal as well as the band likes to cadence their music with slow and very clear guitar phrasing. It is possible to distinguish each note guitar duo Brandon Corsair and Paul Gelbach performs. Moreover, it is possible to listen very well the bass lines, which are a bit different from other Metal bass lines as Brian Verderber also uses phrases to fill in the blanks he has to. In general, Metal bassists prefer to give the tone note. As a reminder, this is an old technique many bassists used in the 1970’s as Judas Priest’s Ian Hill and Scorpion’s Francis Buchholz only to name a few allowing a more melodic effect in the music. By the way, melody is a signature of Serpent Rider.
Musicwise, in terms of the construction of the guitars’ phrases I found a great deal of influence of Viper’s “Soldiers of Sunrise,” not because of the use of them, but for the way the guitar duo performs the notes very slowly and carefully. As I said, it is possible to distinguish each note. Of course, as a result of that, Iron Maiden are also a great influence even though the guitar phrasing is not that fast, but the intent is the same. That is the reason why the bass cannot use only the tone notes, otherwise there would be huge blanks in the music. A highlight to drummer Drake Graves and the way he fills the blanks in tracks as “The Hero’s Spirit” giving it a sense of whole. Asit would be obvious, R. Villar’s voice makes a lot of difference in the band’s music giving it the more melodic idea the band wishes.
As I am talking about the guitar phrasing, album warmer “Steel Is the Answer” showcases how cohesive the guitar duo is as they double the phrasing using octavates, I mean, one guitarist plays the notes and the other plays their octaves higher or lower. It is also impressive the quantity of phrases the band plays in each song as grand finale “In Spring” proves it. By the way, I had the impression before, but it is in “In Spring” that I felt R. Villar’s voice very similar to Jefferson Airplane’s Grace Slick. To some extent, Serpent Rider kept the same psychedelic intent Jefferson Airplane had.
“The Ichor of Chimaera” is an album of a lot of influences and that’s exactly what makes it great. It also proves Serpent Rider strong personality and their adherence to their musical proposal. A band has to believe in the music they make.
Serpent Rider “The Ichor of Chimaera” will be released on March 28th via No Remorse Records.
Track Listing:
1. Steel Is the Answer
2. Radiant
3. The Ichor of Chimaera
4. Matri Deorum
5. The Hero’s Spirit
6. Tyrant’s March
7. In Spring
Watch “Matri Deorum” official lyric video here:
Source: metaladdicts.com
