Australia has produced some top metal acts with the likes of Black Majesty, Dungeon, Lord, and the band whose latest CD is reviewed here, Ilium. Ilium is a melodic/power metal band whose latest release Vespertilion (also their third overall) is an impressive mixture of songs. Lord Tim (Dungeon and Lord) features on vocals again and does a fine job, his voice fitting the music on Vespertilion perfectly. First track "Solar Amplexus", clocking in at over 9 minutes, is one of the longer tracks on the CD and after a slow intro kicks off into some faster paced metal with some interesting music throughout. The guitar riffs and melodies from Jason Hodges and Adam Smith are the standout on Vespertilion. Drummer Tim Yatras's playing is also impressive, and he can really kick it into high gear when required, just listen track seven, one of my favourites, "The Black Abyss". Lyrically this is a very interesting CD and it's obvious that a lot of time and thought has gone into the writing process, probably helped by the fact that Jason Hodges is also a novel writer. Ilium's Vespertilion is one of the better CD's of its type to come out of Australia so check it out if you like well played melodic/power metal. I really look forward to their next release.
Track Listing
1. Solar Amplexus
2. Undergods
3. Desinence: Beowulf and the Serpent
4. Drilling Through a Proton
5. Parasites in Calvary
6. Futility
7. Black Abyss
8. Beowulf: The Peroration
9. Vespertilion
10. Romulus and Remus