{"id":56189,"date":"2017-11-29T20:48:49","date_gmt":"2017-11-30T01:48:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=56189"},"modified":"2017-11-29T20:48:49","modified_gmt":"2017-11-30T01:48:49","slug":"metalite-heroes-in-time-music-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2017\/metalite-heroes-in-time-music-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Metalite | Heroes In Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis<\/span>
\n– Sr. Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"Heroes In Time<\/em> is the debut album from Stockholm-based Metalite, and this new high energy quintet makes music will appeal to fans of Amaranthe, Beyond the Black, and just about any other Female Fronted Modern Metal band.<\/p>\n

Metalite was founded in 2015 by lead singer Emma Bensing and guitarist Edwin Premberg. Heroes in Time<\/em> is packed with upbeat rhythms and sing-along choruses, stellar guitar work, manic double bass drums, booming bass, and driving keyboards. As tight as the music is, the true star of this band is singer Emma Bensing. Her voice is strong and clear, and her delivery is passionate and fierce. The guitar heroics of Premberg and Robert \u00d6rnesved ae a close second, and they are not afraid to be guitar heroes when needed. Couple great vocals and excellent musicianship with the massive production talent of Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, Evergrey, Amaranthe) and you get one of the stronger Melodic Metal releases of the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfterlife\u201d kicks off the release in impressive style \u2013 keys leading into guitars and upbeat drums \u2013 summing up Metalite’s music in a tidy little package. The high energy anthems and positive lyrics continue through \u201cPurpose of Life\u201d – a track built on sweeping choruses and intense guitars. After these two openers, comparisons to Amaranthe are inevitable. The synths and keys, coupled with the intense rhythms and general shiny, upbeat tempos are a dead ringer, although Bensing sings with a little more grit and bite than Amaranthe’s Elise Ryd, and she is the sole vocalist. \u201cNightmare\u201d somehow manages to kick the energy level even higher, with all musicians turning it up to the proverbial \u201c11,\u201d and the heavier \u201cThe Hunter\u201d drops into a more chunky Progressive\/Power Metal groove thanks to strong teamwork by Majd’s bass and Larsson’s drums. The toe-tapping title track gallops along driven by the drums, but strong harmony vocals and slick synths play a vital role.<\/p>\n

The band drops the tempo, but just a little, on the more fluid and flowing \u201cPower of Metal\u201d – a track that varies in tempo and tone enough to let Bensing’s voice truly shine. Choppy riffs and progressive timing patterns let the guitars take over the spotlight during \u201cOver and Done.\u201d \u201cThe Light Of Orion\u201d places vocals in the center as the keys and rhythm guitars back off nicely during the verses allowing voice, drums, and bass to dominate \u2013 the extended guitar break here is excellent. The power ballad \u201cIn The Middle of the Night\u201d must be considered as one of the best vocal performances of 2017 – Bensing is equally at home singing in front of a simple keyboard line as she is in front of the band cranked up to the max. \u201cBlack Horse Rider\u201d again gallops off to the power metal zone, bringing tales of the Templars and Crusades to life. \u201cThe Great Force Within Us\u201d wraps the release and once again hits all the high points \u2013 emotional vocals, intense drums and bass, slick guitars with big hooks, and positive, upbeat lyrics.<\/p>\n

Hansen’s crisp production also bolster the comparisons to Amaranthe, but Metalite stands apart thanks to stronger songwriting skills (and a better command of the English language) and less reliance on the 3-vocalist crutch. If there is a weakness it is a simple one \u2013 every song but one is intense and fast-paced, so the listener may be a bit worn out by the time they reach the finish line. Another ballad, or at least a slower tempo track or two, would do wonders to showcase the breadth of talent across the band.<\/p>\n

Metalite’s Heroes In Time<\/em> is a Melodic Metal barn-burner of an album. The core musicians are all amazingly talented and work well together, and Bensing’s vocals are nothing short of spectacular. Upbeat songs, positive words, and top-notch production values make Metalite’s debut highly recommended!<\/p>\n

Genre: Melodic Metal<\/p>\n

Band:
\nEmma Bensing – Vocals
\nEdwin Premberg – Guitar
\nRobert \u00d6rnesved – Guitar
\nRobert Majd – Bass
\nLea Larsson \u2013 Drums
\nGuest guitarists: Fraser Edwards (Ascension), Jakob Svensson (Wigelius)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tAfterlife
\n2.\tPurpose of Life
\n3.\tNightmare
\n4.\tThe Hunter
\n5.\tHeroes in Time
\n6.\tPower of Metal
\n7.\tOver and Done
\n8.\tThe Light of Orion
\n9.\tIn The Middle of the Night
\n10.\tBlack Horse Rider
\n11.\tThe Great Force Within Us<\/p>\n

Label: Inner Wound Recordings<\/p>\n

Website: http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/metalitemetal<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: [usr 8 size=20]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis – Sr. Columnist — Heroes In Time is the debut album from Stockholm-based Metalite, and this new high energy quintet makes music will appeal to fans of Amaranthe, Beyond the Black, and […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":56190,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15128],"tags":[13935,10505,3439,13934,12354],"class_list":{"0":"post-56189","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2017","8":"tag-heroes-in-time","9":"tag-inner-wound-recordings","10":"tag-melodic-metal","11":"tag-metalite","12":"tag-music-review"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56189"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56189\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}