BLACKHEARTH – The Wrath Of God

There are many things the Mediterranean countries are famous for… and Metal bands are certainly not one of those things. Of course, Italy has Rhapsody of Fire and Lacuna Coil, Spain has Mägo de Oz and Angelus Apatrida… but overall, it is the North of Europe and the Isles where the ores of Heavy Metal can be found. But one of those less known bands made it to release an album in December 2021. It is their second record and it features a guest appearance by no one but Tim “Ripper” Owens – but there is more to that album! It is titled The Wrath of God and the band is called Blackhearth, all the way from Basque Country. The voice of the South needs to be heard.

The album kicks off with a song titled “Betrayal” and one thing can be said for sure – there sure are similarities between Blackhearth and such bands as Judas Priest and Iced Earth. There is plenty of heaviness there and if heaviness is not the only thing wanted then it is good to wait until the solos come in – because these are great in most of the songs and this one is no exception to that rule. One thing the band seems to be missing out on much is catchiness. As much as that is not something a Metal band couldn’t do without, it really feels as if something was missing there. There is heaviness there yes, but there is no trace (or very little) of that kick that makes Metal fans go wild. The vocals… these things are much easier said than done, but it sounds like the singer either should chill out a bit… or the band is trying hard to sound heavier than they are. But things get better in the third track titled “My Bornless Child” where the singer is doing a really good job. Also, the track is a 7 minute one – something fans of Metal with a bit of melancholy to it should approve of.

On the non-musical side it is noteworthy that the album cover – really nice one – can bring Blood for Blood (Krov za Krov) by the masters of Russian Metal called Arya (Ария).

Songs come and go and there is one thing there that really needs pointing out: it rarely happens that keyboards put so much life into the overall sound. Just like Dream Theater’s Jordan Rudess takes his band a whole level above, Julio Veiga also provides Blackhearth with a lot of magic. These keys can definitely make the listener drift away easily. There are some great riffs here and there, like in the 6th track “This World”, but still, there is something missing in the overall sound. The next track however should shut most critics’ mouths – and not because it is the one to feature the legendary Ripper Owens (who is a perfect addition to it), but simply because that song actually kicks. There are dynamics, there is power, there is the Metal frenzy there. Despite the Iced Earth feel to it, that song could also be described as Near-Thrash-Experience… and heads should bang to this one. The album is slowly reaching its end… and then comes the final track “Banished Forever”… and this is where some catchiness was included during the songwriting process. The bassist is doing a great job all through the song, especially during the clean part. All those who appreciate walking bass lines will sure approve of this one. You never know how long it may take to get to the real gem!

So to sum things up, The Wrath of God is not very likely to be an exception to the rule that the Mediterranean countries do not conquer the world of Metal. There are great solos there (for some nice Harmonic Minor experience, it might be a good idea to head to the 9th track titled “Reaching The Shore”), there’s plenty of quality riffage, some cool bass lines and, like said before, some amazing keyboards… but all these things are the icing on the cake… and that cake could be better. But… let the guys at Blackhearth do their thing. There are bands there that sound much better live than they do in the studio – perhaps Blackhearth are one of those bands.