Only the ones who have been on Mars for the – let’s say – last 30 years won’t notice the huge influence Manowar made on Triumpher. This can be felt from the beginning with the intro “Overture to Elysian,” but with album track tittle “Spirit Invictus” things got a little bit clearer. Mars Triumph’s vocal leave no shadow of doubt. I felt myself listening to “Black, Wind, Fire and Steel” or any other with the same vibe. On the other hand, what a throat this Mars Triumph guy has.
Before saying anything about bands that honor other more famous bands, since 2016 I’ve been writing reviews here. For that I’ve been receiving lots of albums and from that I learned the difference between a tribute band and a band whose inspiration lies on another band. There were bands here the feeling was I was listening to the original band with some very few details lacking. Yeah, that’s right. They are the tribute bands. Instrumentals and vocals and also the music writing are very similar, or even similar to the original. That deosn’t happen with a band whose inspiration lies on another band. This is the case of Triumpher and “Spirit Invictus” where the inspiration on Manowar is obvious, but nothing more than that. Lyrically, the band is inspired on Greek mithology and heroes even though the album tittle is inspired on the Latin phrase ‘Spiritus invictus’ that translates to “unconquerable spirit” and is the motto of the Marine Raiders, an elite regiment in the Marine Corps Special Operations Forces Command (MARSOC).
Well, I’m not here to pass a judgement on bands that have this kind of inspiration. They are what they are. “Alexander,” for instance, has many modern Black Metal instrumental features. It’s a path. The album is really fun and good to listen to.
Triumpher “Spirit Invictus” was released on October 25th via No Remorse Records.
Track Listing:
1. Overture to Elysian
2. Arrival of the Avenger
3. Athena (1st Chapter)
4. Spirit Invictus
5. Alexander
6. Shores of Marathon
7. Triumpher
8. Hall of a Thousand Storms
Watch “Spirit Invictus” official lyric video here:
I’m just a lucky guy who has chosen metal to live with for a long time. Metal changed my life for good. It made me more confident and stronger. Metalheads are naturally far away from the mass mediocrity and don’t accept impostures from anybody else. Metal is more than music, it’s a life changing oportunity!