New Wave of British Heavy Metal Band Salem UK return for a new album. Having honed their craft over the past forty years, the band deliver a stunning collection of thrashes, smashes and hits on Win Lose Or Draw that is sure to give them new fans as well as excite older fans.
“The Wraith,” comes in hard and heavy. The riffs are juicy and bluesy, there’s a sense of something being built up to. The song is definitely a mission statement for this album and the journey that can be expected. “Betrayed,” another riff monster, turning and twisting through the serenade. The riffs are complimented perfectly by the vocals, they allow for some seriously imaginative thinking for the melodies. “Blind,” gets some fascinating treatment. Turning through the wood work, starting off clean with a haunting guitar lead, before turning into something gnarly and filled with grit. “Win Lose Or Draw,” the title track shimmers through. The vocals are upbeat and filled with energy and focus. The guitars are pumped full of energy, turning through the shift and keeping everything going like a well oiled machine. “Souls of Evermore,” brings the thunder, turning through the marks of pain and torture toward something even more impressive, that of the clinical turn.
“Circumstances Change,” a haunting serenade, a song that turns through the fluidity, bringing together some fascinating melodies and thoughtfulness. As the band continues onward on this journey, the vocals truly get things going, there’s a lot of emotion in the song that some newer bands could take notes from. “Sentinel,” takes a fascinating dive into the dark, bringing some interesting new melodies to the fore. There’s a slight dip and turn here, before things take a new turn once more, with the heaviness and the rage. “Victorious,” is a pure riff monster, pure as can be. “Censored,” moves quickly with agility and grace, turning the screws one way and then another, demanding to be heard and allowing the listener to sense the changes. “Queen Serene,” goes big and hard, starting off clean before slowly building up into something completely new and epic.
The album is out on 8th November via Dissonance Productions.