Nightmare Dominate On 'The Dominion Gate'
Finland, Norway, Sweden, Netherlands, Germany. What do all these countries have in common? They are all well known and renowned for making top-notch metal, which is recognised, all over the world. France? You certainly wouldn't expect to see that in the mix, for great bands, let alone having many metal bands of its own in the first place. French thrash-metallers Nightmare have set out to prove all of our expectations wrong with their latest release 'The Dominion Gate'
If you like Thrash, if you like Iron Maiden and if you like modern power-metal styled keyboards, then you'll like Nightmare. Synth-patch led keyboard mixed with thrashing guitar riffs and drawn-out solos are what make up the musical content of this album with them most notable tracks being 'Temple Of Tears' and 'The Dominion Gate'. The only place the band can be faulted musically is perhaps on the vocals of singer Jo Amore which at times can become whiney, nasal and most of all a tad annoying.
An aspect that most would fail to focus on but which is notable in this release is the quality of the production. Produced and mixed by Terje Refsnes who has done similar such tasks for such bands as Tristania, Green Carnation and Sirenia; this album simple sounds very good, very balanced and very high quality at all times and recognition must be made of that.
One aspect of this album which certainly made it all the more notable was the inclusion of guest appearances from Floor Jansen and Sander Gommans of After Forever! Besides After Forever being a personal favourite band of mine, Sander Gommans' grunting and bestial vocal work on the track 'Heretic' manages to lift this album both in variety and quality. The addition of the growled vocals in the typical, Iron Maiden-esque vocals on offer elsewhere are very appealing indeed. Whilst guest appearances can often become pointless and contrived if done badly, luckily on 'The Dominion Gate' they not only work well but are one of the highlights of the album itself.
Overall this is a strong, if somewhat esoteric listen. On first tries it sounded simple like 13 well produced thrash/heavy metal tracks, if somewhat lacking in variety or identity. On subsequent listen this album grows and grows making it, although perhaps not one of the most entertaining, certainly one of the most compelling and interesting listens I have had the chance to hear so far this year. Although perhaps not suitable for the widest audience, 'The Dominion Gate' is undeniably a solid release.