Smoulder - "Violent Creed of Vengeance"

Femme-forward Classic Heavy Metal

Smoulder is an epic heavy/doom metal band, originally from Canada but now based in Finland. Their style emulates the sound of early heavy and power metal bands from the 70s through the early 90s, complete with mixing that depresses the vocal line into the instrumentation and adds a touch of echo.

You know, how early metal generally had poor sound quality because there was zero money in it? Smoulder leans into that.

But the music is genuinely really good. The instrumentation is complex and precise, and the band never sounds like its lost. Even with the depressed vocals, the entire sound on this album really works. I mean, I enjoyed Smoulder’s last outing, but I really think this album is a step up.

Oh, and by “epic”, I mean epic. As in, Smoulder’s lyrical material is all high-fantasy, magic and monsters, warriors and warlocks, etc. And, as the vocalist is a woman, many of the lyrics are very girl power, as the speaker on most seems to also be a woman as she takes out evil wizards, fights dragons, etc. It really is an epic album in terms of lyrical content. And if you’re craving some new old metal, this should scratch the itch.

Rating: Teal Green