NOVERIA - The Gates of the Underworld

NOVERIA

Album: The Gates of the Underworld

Genre: Symphonic Powermetal

Release Date: August 25th, 2023

Country: Italy

Label: Scarlet Records

Band Links: WEBSITE / BANDCAMP / TWITTER / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOOK

I still remember that WOW! moment when I came across powermetal band NOVERIA and their mighty song “Broken” back in 2019. Their accompanying, third album “Aequilibrium” easily ended up in my Top 3 that year and, you might have guessed, new music by the Italian quintet was highly anticipated since then. On August 25th, they will open “The Gates of the Underworld” for us, lyrically getting on a very personal level this time with each song including real life stories from the band and their fans.

For those who are not yet familiar with NOVERIA: their work clearly deserves the tag "power" in the genre description. Drummer Davide Calabretta plays along fast and pushing, supported by bassist Andrea Arcangeli with a rather hard-hitting, dry sound. Guitarist Francesco Mattei and keyboarder Julien Spreutels add their parts in best powermetal manner to build up marvelous harmonic layers, but also offer incredible, virtuosic solos, often parallel or duelling, and naturally woven into the overall context. Singer Francesco Corigliano impresses with his expressive performance and wide range, lays his wonderful melody lines over the mighty soundscapes.

Compared to "Aequilibrium", the background orchestration got a bit more cinematic, the challenging keyboard and guitar runs even a bit faster. The song-writing is again absolutely well-crafted, and varied enough to make their new opus a great listen.

The songs that stand out for me are "Overlord" (earworm warning), "Origins", and the epic title track, but the rest doesn't need to hide as well. Just the slower "Ascent" left me a bit underwhelmed because of the (pre-) chorus, and the guest appearance of Fabio Lione is a nice feature, but not necessarily needed to lift up "Descent" considering the rather similar vocal tone, and the other skills shown throughout the record.

If you're new to the NOVERIA party and a fan of the genre, there are surely some of the earlier mentioned WOW! moments waiting for you. In case you're already familiar with their previous work, you'll quickly recognise melody patterns and stylistic elements. Nevertheless this album has the potential to grow, and after having spent several days within "The Gates of the Underworld", I'm happy to report that NOVERIA deliver another genre highlight. Welcome to step in!

Written by Katha