Reviews

The Spirit Cabinet – Bloodlines

April 22, 2020

My dear fans, once in a while we receive a band that is a groundbreaker with a sound that goes beyond everything we know. The general guideline in The Spirit Cabinet “Bloodlines” is the classic Metal drive. But the band does such a different job that the fan may get a little dizzy with so many different sonances throughout the six tracks of the album. As I said, “Bloodlines” is changing the know concepts of Heavy Metal music. In a rough description, this album mixes System of A Down with Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. Not only that, add some Extreme Metal features to the mix. I said rough description, because it can’t hold it all, but it does help the fan to understand the band’s intent. It’s not only the use of some oriental sonance, but also the vocals and the mix with some other Metal features such as some Extreme Metal sounds.

In some ways, “Bloodlines” goes in a subgenre escalade. I explain, first track “Devils in the Details” is old school Heavy Metal, in the following track “In Antique Vortex” the band introduces SOAD elements and gets heavier, to cut chase, on the fourth track “The Medium in the Mask” the band goes in a raw Death Metal vibe with some dramatic elements in the end; and, the last, but not least track, “Subtle Art of Sleep Paralysis” and “The Celestial Intelligencer” are Black Metal is their vibe. This album has one of the most aggressive plot twists that I’ve ever reviewed here. Aggressive because the tracks get almost unrecognizable if the fan pays attention only to the instrumentals.

Bottom line, I reaffirm what I said in the beginning that The Spirit Cabinet are a groundbreaker band. Not only because they can walk through many Metal subgenres, but also because they are able to make a difference in all of them. My guess is that the band has so different influences brought by their members that not to let them down they would pay the homage to all of them. And voilà, here’s “Bloodlines” and all its ups and downs in terms of speed, velocity, rage, wraith, and mix of elements. A lesson of how to honestly embrace Metal and its diversity, if you ask me.

The Spirit Cabinet “Bloodlines” will be released on April 24th via Ván Records.

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