Kal-El: Dark Majesty

Talk about a cool name for a band. For all you planet Crypton fans out there we bring you the latest effort from Stavanger, Norway’s Kal-El, titled Dark Majesty, the band’s fifth full length release and my first exposure to the band. The first thing that caught my attention is the superb cover art. It is like something right out of ‘60s serial sci-fi, as it has a vintage look, very refreshing in this all-digital age.

This is some heavy stuff, and it all comes wrapped in a blanket of powerful vocals and pounding guitar riffs. This is heavy metal with more than a tinge of psychedelic stonerisms and doomy sludgery. The disc begins with the eleven plus minute “Temple�, featuring a strangely hypnotic riff progression on repeat, with fuzzy, slashing chords and great lead vocals adding to the band’s mystic vibe. Soon, the heaviness hits you like a slab of concrete, as the guitar work continues to impress. On “Spiral�, the riffs feel like an avalanche of fuzz and distortion, almost impenetrable, save for the outstanding vocal melody. The riffs drip with as much melody as fuzz in the doomy “Mica�, where tripped out spaciness invokes the mighty Hawkwind and in “Hyperion�, the riffs have a cool, spacey effect before the heavy barrage sets in with thunderous intensity. The title track is another stellar offering with its melodic Ozzy-like vocals, psychedelic soloing, and soul shattering guitar riffs.

Dark Majesty is a stellar metal album, done the old fashioned way, with passion, grit and a flair for the ‘70s. Absolutely recommended!

A Majestic Mountain Records.

Band members:
Captain (vocals)
Josh (guitar)
Doffy (guitar)
Bjudas (drums)
Johnsen (bass)

Discography (full length):
Pakal (2013)
Ecosphere (2015)
Astrodoomeda (2017)
Witches Of Mars (2019)
Dark Majesty (2021)

Track Listing:
1. Temple (11:38)
2. Spiral (4:27)
3. Mica (7:15)
4. Hyperion (8:49)
5. Dark Majesty (8:40)
6. Comêta (4:12)
7. Kala Misha (9:59)
8. Vimana (10:06)

Added: November 20th 2022
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Band @ Bandcamp
Hits: 915
Language: english

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