| Musical Style: Power Metal | Produced By: |
| Record Label: Metalism | Country Of Origin: Columbia |
| Year Released: 2021 | Artist Website: Energema |
| Tracks: 9 | Rating: 80% |
| Running Time: 35:24 |
Am I out of line to suggest modern media has covered The Exodus to the point of overdone? If it is not bad enough several Hollywood moves have depicted the Old Testament story about the departure of the Israelites from Egypt under Moses, including the 1998 animated film The Prince of Egypt and 2014 epic Exodus: Gods and Kings, the hard music community is every bit culpable with multiple concept albums to its credit. Israeli progressive metal act Amaseffer, for instance, released in 2008 the first of what was to be a trio of albums dealing with The Exodus in Slaves For Life (we are still waiting for the second and third chapters), while Slovakia’s Signum Regis put out in 2014 its take on the matter with its aptly entitled power metal effort Exodus.
Upon hearing that Bogotá, Colombia based Energema was also making The Exodus the focal point of its September of 2021 Metalism Records sixth full length album Promised Land, my initial thoughts were ‘here we go again’. Now, do not get me wrong in that The Exodus conveys significant meaning in the form of redemption, how God delivered the Israelites and made them His special people, and faithfulness, God has the power to do exactly what He promises. That said, I also cannot help but feel other meaningful Old Testament subjects exist in which to base a concept album.
Take non-commercial metal act True Strength, which in 2020 released an album situated around the Book of Joshua in The Mighty Hand of Yahweh and is currently at work on a follow up effort derivative of the Book of Ezekiel, The House, The Holy, The Third. To be completely fair, Energema has of late branched out in such capacity as well, noting 2019 fourth album Magical Force and fifth The King of The Giants from 2020 draw inspiration from Samson and David & Goliath, respectively. Energema initially came to our attention with its 80% reviewed Chronicles of Narnia influenced 2016 debut full-length The Lion’s Forces.
What it comes down to at this juncture and regardless of concept therein, it whether the Promised Land is musically any good. I have to answer with a resounding yes! What we have in Energema, whom draws its name from I Corinthians 12:6 - ‘and there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all’ - is melodic power metal in similar vein as Gamma Ray, Helloween, Eterna and Edguy. It is worth noting power metal of European (Theocracy), neo-classical (Narnia) and classic US (Recon) forms also deserves mention.
Hence, musical affinity to albums opening cuts “The Rise Of Ramses II (Overture)”, a one minute introductory instrumental home to classical keyboards and orchestration, and “The Eyes Of Pharaoh”, a speed metal romper scurrying to double bass and every bit headlong riffing as vocalist Arley Gómez helps set the dramatic tone with his pristine, classic tenor voice. An extended instrumental run includes cool lead guitar and keyboard interplay.
At this point, it deserves note I will not be going into detail about lyrics in that I had to go the download route via Bandcamp, which included the music files only and no liner notes. I passed on the lone physical copies I could find from an eBay seller located in the ‘Russian Federation’ due to the fact I am not a fan of the time and extra costs associated with international shipping.
Third cut “Promised Land” abates tempo to the mid-paced as raised-up guitars and smoother keyboards lead the high-spirited way. Favorite part is the brief baroque vocals at the mid-point followed by a generous stretch of neo-classical soloing from the guitar team of Jeff Castro and Nicolas Waldo. This one would sound at home on any Narnia album.
Speaking of Waldo, he is the lone holdover from the Lion’s Forces roster, referencing the departed Alejandro Pinzón (lead vocals), Andres Parada (guitars) and Daniel Pinzón (bass) and replacements bassist Camil Duarte and as noted Castro and Gómez. Julián VillWolfs provides the Promised Land timekeeping.
This reviewer’s choice cut ensues in “The Burning Bush”. Song separates as not only albums lengthiest at seven minutes, but also darkest and heaviest in leaning towards a straightforward metal semblance reminding of the aforementioned True Strength (a very good thing!). It also reveals a wonderfully catchy refrain to draw in at once and keeps the song a fresh listen despite the span. Of equal import is the sound of flames to start over narration from Exodus 3:6-7.
Back to resilient power metal with “Foreign Reign”. Lithe soloing and double bass get things going before impetus launches to all out speed based territory, the galvanic tone endorsed the remaining way as light harmony vocals and classically influenced guitars further excite the boisterous scene. Another lead guitar and keyboard duel round things out instrumentally.
“Secret Spells”, a discourse on Moses’ staff turning to a snake and start of the ten plagues, takes a different slant with its aggressive, lower register vocals, albeit not to the point of extreme. It also proves of a forward nature, as narration in Hebrew to start changeovers to brisk riffing and (what sounds like) harpsichord to the extent Impellitteri comes to mind.
“River Of Blood” approaches from a slower, moodier standpoint. First minute and half is instrumental to see dreamy and ethereal moments trade off with rhythm guitar avalanches, manifesting a rawer, almost bluesy essence inducing ahead as smooth vocals return with Gómez pleading ‘let me people go’ for the thunderous refrain. More exhilarating lead guitar completes the final seconds.
Album takes a dramatic turn at the end as “Exodus”, three cinematic minutes starting to narration from Exodus 9:1 ahead of morphing into a blazing instrumental, gives way to “Crossing The Sea (Epilogue)”, also instrumental but shorter at a minute and half in highlighting a Middle Eastern flair.
This also leads to my main point of contention with the project: at just the moment the story reaches its apex - God parts the Red Sea to allow the Israelites to pass through and drowns Pharaoh’s forces - a brief instrumental comes across, well, anticlimactic. I would like to have heard instead another seven-minute epic (or longer) to better capture the obvious heightened emotion of the moment and bring the album to its stunning if not theatrical conclusion.
Promised Land proves an overall very fine power metal take on The Exodus. Yes, the topic has been done to the point of ‘flavor of the month’ and there are other Old Testament subject to cover, but give Energema credit for its accurate not to mention cinematic take on the subject. A good measure of this attributes to the groups abilities, including the smooth, high-end vocals alongside accenting keyboards, classically influenced guitars and duel lead soloing. It will be to the benefit of the hard music community if Energema continues to be so prolific- if it wishes to continue with the Old Testament themes, I highly encourage it covers the Book of Proverbs next time.
Review by Andrew Rockwell
Track Listing: “The Rise Of Ramses II (Overture)” (1:03), “The Eyes Of Pharaoh” (4:36), “Promised Land” (4:30), “The Burning Bush” (7:03), “Foreign Reign” (4:43), “Secret Spells” (4:27), “River Of Blood” (4:55), “Exodus” (2:50), “Crossing The Sea (Epilogue)” (1:23)
Musicians
Arley Gómez - Lead Vocals
Jeff Castro - Guitars
Nicolas Waldo - Guitars & Keyboards
Camilo Duarte - Bass
Julián VillWolfs - Drums
