It’s hard not to get caught up in the bombast as this Hertfordshire four-piece let fly with their debut full-length of epic, Scandinavian-flavoured melodic death metal.
Gloom-laden, yet ultimately uplifting is the name of the game here. Synth-driven atmospherics lend mood to the anthemic guitars and the generic but serviceable growl of frontman Ross King that runs throughout Heroes and Ethereal, while the power metal gallop found in Incendium only adds to the overarching triumphant nature of what’s on offer.
If the soaring clean vocals of bassist Phil Romeo are initially jarring, they prove to be the real ace card here, not only acting as a superb counterpoint to the classic melodeath backbone of New Dawn, but helping prevent those obvious Insomnium and Dark Tranquillity influences from turning the album into a mere exercise in imitation. This is an impressive, if a little ragged, debut that marks Countless Skies as ones to watch.