ALTAIR - Descending: A Devilish Comedy Review

ALTAIR - Descending: A Devilish Comedy

Sleaszy Rider Records

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ALTAIR descend from Italy and they were formed in 2008. In 2013 they released their debut album entitled “Lost Eden”. This album has made quite a sensation in the underground metal scene and the first single from it won the first prize in an Italian contest. The prize was to record the song “Power of the Gods” with Fabio Leone.  All these have captured the interest of Sleaszy Rider Records which offered them a deal and the result is the release of their sophomore album which I am about to present to you.

Many bands have delivered great debut albums, but the crucial moment in their career is their sophomore one because there they prove if they endure the test of time and can offer good songs to the audience. I have not listened to the debut album of ALTAIR, but judging from what I have listened to here, I find it impossible to be inferior to “Lost Eden”.

Musically the band moves on the path of European power metal with a lot of progressive metal elements that come mainly from the U.S. metal scene. Although I am not a big fan of the progressive metal sound, ALTAIR in this release manage to play some complicated and skillful themes and also transmit them to the listener with such immediacy that you can only find in more traditional sounding bands.

So, if you like a band that manages to fuse influences from HELLOWEEN, GAMMA RAY, RHAPSODY, KAMELOT, SHADOW GALLERY and SYMPHONY X in its sound and deliver them in their own way, then ALTAIR and this album especially is something that you won’t like to miss. All the compositions here are very interesting but for me the one that stands out a little bit more than the others is the song entitled “A Lesson Before Ascending” that combines symphonic, power and progressive metal elements in great harmony and balance. Actually it is the song the sums up very well the whole sound of the band.

Nick “Verkaim” Parastatidis