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░ ██ ██ Artist: Armoured Angel ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Angel of the Sixth Order █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 1999 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2016-01-14 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Death Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Warhead Records ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ One of Australia's best kept secrets is Armoured █
█ Angel, a thrash band from the dark days of the █
█ 1980s. Their only full-length, Angel of the Sixth █
█ Order, is an even better kept secret than their █
█ earlier career. While it lacks the Green brothers, █
█ who had been a big part of Armoured Angel, █
█ participating in every recording except the very █
█ first demo and this, the band's very last █
█ recording. The approach here is quite different █
█ from the unreleased demo from 1995, the rather █
█ slow-paced and anthemic songs aren't on the focus █
█ here. With the Greens gone, Lucy has taken a step █
█ backwards and returned to the sound of the older █
█ recordings for inspiration. █
█ That is not to say that they have regressed though █
█ one would be interested in hearing what Lucy would █
█ have ended up with the Green brothers and that █
█ style of writing. What the band has done here is █
█ take a thrash metal approach to death metal. They █
█ have written death metal songs with tuned down █
█ guitars, a low end heavy production - which may █
█ not be surprising since Lucy is a bassist - but █
█ used a lot of thrashy riffs. The songwriting is █
█ rather simplistic with its typical verse chorus █
█ build up. However, the songs always have a C-part █
█ that kicks in soon after the second chorus. These █
█ C-parts liven up even the dullest songs of the █
█ album, Crucifiction - which follows a single fast █
█ and simplistic drum beat and riff all through its █
█ chorus and verse - and Cervical Slut. In fact, █
█ this juxtaposition makes the latter half of █
█ Crucifiction seem like one of the best parts of █
█ the album. The C-part of Crucifiction is more epic █
█ and melodic like the album's beginner, Whore of █
█ Babylon, or the single-material of the album, █
█ Seven Angels. Both songs feature some of the █
█ fastest paces of the album combined with soaring, █
█ flowing riffs. Especially the vocal-less chorus of █
█ Seven Angels is an excellent example - where the █
█ riff is more of a lead actually - that reminds one █
█ strongly of the more traditional past of the band. █
█ The traditionality can also be seen in the █
█ presence of melody. Actual leads and solos are few █
█ and far between, but the riffs more than make up █
█ for it, forming surprisingly fluid and melodic █
█ wholes. This melodicity combined with the quite █
█ old-styled death metal approach to songwriting █
█ makes for rather unique sounding death metal to █
█ which the rather old sounding production provides █
█ even more credence. The guitars have an excellent █
█ crunch to them and it lends itself very well to █
█ the fluid riffs of Armoured Angel, even though the █
█ sound does overshadow the drums and vocals a bit. █
█ Their sound is heavy on the low end, which makes █
█ the plain sounding bass practically unnoticeable █
█ even though it is audible. It is rather surprising █
█ considering the bassist is the mainman of the █
█ band, but doesn't hinder the band. The █
█ overpowering sound of the guitars is a hinderance █
█ when it comes to the cymbals. The crashes are █
█ mixed rather low and some of the smaller ones get █
█ very buried in the mix. On the other end, the █
█ hi-hat is distinctly high in the mix, not enough █
█ to be irritating unless you are actually listening █
█ for it. The bass and snare drums provide a good █
█ background though the bass drum's sound is a █
█ little flat. It is only noticeable in the parts █
█ with double beats. █
█ As for the drumming itself, Steve Luff does a █
█ decent enough job. He varies his beats well enough █
█ though there are a few faster ones - the █
█ aforementioned Crucifiction comes to mind - which █
█ could have used more variation. However this might █
█ be due to the songwriting as well. There is a █
█ surprising amount of unorthodoxly timed and paced █
█ bass drum hits in his beats, which always spice █
█ things up a bit. He has flair with the toms and █
█ cymbals - as showcaed in Whore of Babylon and █
█ Seven Angels respectively - as well as fills █
█ altogether, though he isn't allowed very much room █
█ for those in most songs. Yuri Ward's vocals aren't █
█ very unique and sound even lazy when he is not █
█ spitting out Lucy's blasphemous lyrics. But they █
█ are properly on the low end and fit the music well █
█ enough. They aren't so harsh as to muffle the █
█ lyrics, though the guitar's make them rather hard █
█ to make out. But the whole is more than the sum of █
█ its parts. While each persons' single instrumental █
█ output is nothing amazing, the unique songwriting █
█ and sense of melody combined with aggression makes █
█ the album one of a kind record, even among █
█ Armoured Angel's own discography. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Whore of Babylon 6:08 ░
░ 2. Eve of Temptation 4:25 ░
░ 3. Seven Angels 4:01 ░
░ 4. Crucifiction 3:57 ░
░ 5. Gadarene Swine 5:24 ░
░ 6. Spear of Destiny 5:48 ░
░ 7. Cervical Slut 3:28 ░
░ 8. Thy Blood Eterne 5:19 ░
░ 9. Carved in Sin 3:49 ░
░ 42:19 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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