RAISING FEAR – Mythos

Another Italian Metal band is entering the arena, but they’re not going to cause a revolution in the European Metal scene. Raising Fear is a band with members who have been part of the music industry for quite some time, and they are now releasing (February 2005) their debut album, Mythos. This is a Power Metal band, and their music it is a mix between an American Metal sound and German Power Metal. Raising Fear sounds like a typical Italian Heavy Metal band, but strangely they do not use any keyboards.

Mythos includes 10 tracks … some songs are quite good, but other songs are just a lot of noise with no direction or meaning whatsoever. The first track, “Thorr,” is a great starter — a real knock out with super-catchy vocals, screaming guitar work, and a damn good rhythm section. For sure, a cool choice of notes. It’s sad that this opening song doesn’t set the standard for the rest of the album. The song is definitely the highlight of the album, and the lyrics are really cool too, so crank this one up, especially while driving.

Another track, which also brings back the good old school Heavy Metal anthems is “The Goddess.” This song is another kicker that offers seven and a half minutes of a mega-driving guitar line and searing vocals … they totally blend together perfectly. This is a slower-paced number, and a very radio friendly track, for sure. The song builds very well, with each part leading to a big chorus.

“Gilgamesh” is truly 7 minutes of pain – the vocals are screaming all over the music, which sound uncontrolled. It is hard to believe this is the same singer as in the track “Thorr.”

The lyrics play heavily on fantasy, as is expected from the title of the album (Mythos), and they have done a good job in that department. The clever play on words keeps the album from being overly cliche.

However, this CD lacks identity, and most of the songs are simply boring. It is only “Thorr” and “The Goddess” that have some potential. Don’t get me wrong, this Raising Fear debut is not bad, but it’s not memorable either. The same goes for the album’s production, which is a little rough. This is not as good as expected more from these guys who have been in this game for many years.

Lineup

Rob DF – vocals
Alberto Toniolo – guitar
Yorick – guitar
Frana – bass
Christian Galimberti – drums