Mystic Prophecy - "Hellriot"

The 'typical' kind of Metal that isn't very typical anymore

This German Heavy/Power/Thrash Metal band is firmly in the “new to me” category. They’ve been around a while. In fact, apparently Ozzy poached their lead guitarist (Gus G) back when they were relatively new in the early 00s. That hasn’t slowed the band, though.

Mystic Prophecy is one of those bands that has remained absolutely *devoted* to the core metal sound. Much of Prog Metal has gone for cerebral sounds and complex composition. Mystic Prophecy is sticking to hard-hitting heavy metal structures with typical Devil/Demon/Hell imagery running rampant in everything they do. And it works for them.

As this is just my first MP release, I can’t really say whether their sound is stagnant. But I can tell you that this is a fun album. Absolutely stellar headbanging material with fun hooks and riffs. Sometimes it chugs, as in “Unholy Hell”; sometimes it screams and flies, as in “Paranoia” (at the end of the chorus).

The whole album is solid, though. I don’t think there’s a bad track here.

Rating: Teal Green