Lightfold – Deathwalkers

Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful!

Grand! Grand! Grand!

Great to start with so great adjectives. Ah, I forgot elegant.

Elegant! Elegant! Elegant!

For whom knows, and remembers, Lightfold with “Deathwalkers” reminds a lot of the elegant, and heavy, the pioneers of 1980s Prog Metal Queensriÿche and the craftsmen of a beloved Art Rock band also from the 1980s that ten in eleven heavy metallers used to praise: Marillion. It’s not only the beautiful voice of Martin Deathwalker who gives much of the joy and light of this effort. It’s also the moody and grand sonance.

Ok, I know, Metal isn’t exactly the genre to talk about beauty, but I guess there is no other word that expresses better what one feels while listening to “Deathwalkers” and its wonderful and pretty arrangements like in “At the Gates of Heaven” – well, very well chosen title, because it’s how it feels. The atmosphere created by the subtle guitars and the strong violins plus the angelical voice is really astonishing. Angels aren’t a common subject in Metal lyrics as well. By the way, the very first seconds of “Deathwalkers” give you this delight at first. Never underestimate beauty, my child of the night. Even the strongest have fallen under it once.

“Save Me” is a track that reminds a lot Queensrÿche’s “Warning” era when the band built a great reputation to loose it in their sophomore effort – I can’t say its name here. To then rescue it with “Empire” and “Operation Mindcrime.”

Okay, back to “Deathwalkers.”

Lightfold make a very good use of choirs and second voices. They are present and embellish many tracks of this “Deathwalkers.” However, the great trick Lightfold do is to balance both big and strong guitars with angelical vocals. A very hard thing to do as Queensrÿche had proven us. “Behind the Veil” is another track that starts with some interesting and uncommon guitars. As a matter of fact, uncommon now, but they used to be very popular in the 1970s and early 1980s. The trick here is that the intro seems to be another track completely separated from the rest. Wise. Title track “Deathwalkers” use them too. A great hail to “Beyond the Unknown” and its keyboards and mood that reminds the great, but unsung Cirith Ungol.

Lightfold “Deathwalkers” was released in 2019 via Pitch Black Records.

Track Listing:

  1. Death as a Beginning (Instrumental)

  2. Save Me

  3. Behind the Veil

  4. Julia

  5. The Collector

  6. Beyond the Unknown

  7. Angel of the Earth

  8. She has to Know

  9. Demon upon Me

  10. Deception

  11. The Battle

  12. Ascending

  13. At the Gates of Heaven (Instrumental)

Watch “Deception” official music video here: