by Justin Gaines
– Senior Columnist/News Editor —
Finnish melodic death metal veterans Mors Principium Est closed out the year with a new album, their fifth to date, titled Dawn of the 5th Era. It’s the first Mors Principium Est album to feature guitarist Kevin Verlay (of Aggressor), but this band has taken other lineup changes in stride, and they do so again here.
If you’re familiar with Mors Principium Est, you know more or less what to expect from Dawn of the 5th Era. With their keyboards/programming, this band has always leaned more towards Dark Tranquillity-style atmosphere and accessibility than the pure aggression of At the Gates. That’s not to say this is all atmospherics and catchy melodies. The guitar riffing is surgically devastating – all speed and precision along the lines of Arsis. This is a lot like a (much) faster Insomnium album.
Between the blsitering guitar work Kevin Verley and Mikko Sipola lay down, the breakneck rhythms and the “used but not abused” programming, Dawn of the 5th Era has a lot going for it. Factor in Ville Viljanen’s harsh but perfectly understandable vocals, which seems rarer and rarer these days, and you have one of the better melodic death metal releases in recent memory. It goes right for the throat, and aside from a couple of instrumental tracks there’s really not any filler here. If you’re looking to sample a couple of the album’s stronger songs, check out “God Has Fallen” and “I Am War.”
Mors Principium Est remains one of the most consistent bands in the melodic death metal genre, and they’ve delivered another killer album in Dawn of the 5th Era. If you like your death metal on the melodic side, especially bands like Dark Tranquillity, Insomnium, Arsis and Norther, you’ll want to get your hands on this one. It’s not quite as amazing as the latest Insomium release, but it is more memorable than Dark Tranquillity’s last album.
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Band:
Mikko Sipola (d)
Kevin Verlay (g)
Andy Gillion (g) (k)
Teemu Heinola (b)
Ville Viljanen (v)
Track Listing:
1. Enter the Asylum
2. God Has Fallen
3. Leader of the Titans
4. We Are the Sleep
5. Innocence Lost
6. I Am War
7. Monster in Me
8. Apricity
9. Wrath of Indra
10. The Journey
11. The Forsaken
Label: AFM Records
Website: www.morsprincipiumest.com
Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10
