October 27, 2010

Looking at the album cover for Viathyn’s The Peregrine Way, one would think of rainbow colored power metal.  And as much as there are those people who dislike power metal and are looking for reasons to validate their disdain for the subgenre, The Peregrine Way is one of the better debuts from a band in a while, regardless of genre.

The Calgary, AB quartet possess a great deal of musical talent, and they also show a penchant for putting it all together to create over an hour of progressive/power metal that an above average veteran band would normally record.  To the untrained listener, Viathyn sounds like Elvenking in many parts, but through the album, Viathyn shows that they have much more to offer in a musical sense.  “Antebellum” can be considered filler, since it is an instrumental that doesn’t do much other than set the tone for the album.  The Peregrine Way begins in earnest with “Heathen Arise,” where the music is equal parts guitar and keyboards.  Vocals are provided by Tomislav Crnkovic, and they are just below nasal levels to be considered tolerable for a significant length of time.  In fact, the vocals actually make this album even better than what the music itself has to offer.  “Sirenum Scopuli” is a fairly good song that features the band using a lot of lead guitar, which enhances the overall sound, but could turn off a few listeners who normally don’t consider power metal worth their time.  In truth, other than “Antebellum,” none of the tracks on the album fall under the five minute mark, which makes patience and a good attention span all the more valuable when listening to The Peregrine Way.  For those who can sit through an hour’s worth of guitar skill, Viathyn has that in spades, “The Oracle’s Prophecy” and “Through the Orchard” being some good examples.  “Canvas” is the band’s catchiest song, as the chorus will likely be stuck in the listener’s head for days, or at the very least, cause the listener to play the song over and over again to the point of wearing it out.  When the band decides to slow it down a little, as evidenced by “Blackened Woods,” there is no letdown for the listener, as the emotion is still as evident as it is on the other parts of the band’s music.  Overall, Viathyn provides some enjoyable songs that could pass for a guide on how to make music from a progressive/power metal point of view.

It isn’t often that a band will blow away the listener with their debut album, but Viathyn does just that.  Despite the “colorful” album cover and lyrical content, The Peregrine Way is far from a laugh fest, thanks to the musicianship and good vocals throughout the album.  Surprisingly, Viathyn isn’t signed yet, but in a perfect world, it won’t be long before The Peregrine Way gets a proper release from a record label.

Release Date: August 7, 2010
Label: Band Self Released

TRACK LISTING

1.  Antebellum
2.  Heathen Arise
3.  Sirenum Scopuli
4.  Through the Orchard
5.  The Oracle’s Prophecy
6.  Blackened Woods
7.  The Twilight Haven
8.  Frail Titan
9.  Canvas
10.  The Antique Man

Total playing time:  64:14

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Viathyn - The Peregrine Way

Reviewer: Peter