Now, the name DYECREST popped up on my radar a few years ago for being one of the then-many projects that Mikael Salo was singing for, with an album called “Are You Not Entertained?“ coming out in 2018. However, it seems the band has a drive to continue and after he parted ways with them to focus on solo material, they opted to continue with Heidi Aaltonen in his stead. It seems that Mikael did one final album with the band before parting ways with them, however, entitled “Once I Had a Heart,” which was out via Rockshots Records on September 29th, 2023.
What was always interesting about Mikael‘s bands was how different they were from one another. Though perhaps he is most famous for his power metal vocals in bands like EVERFROST and METAL DE FACTO, I’ve always had a soft spot for his more alternative style, which you can hear in THY ROW‘s debut release. With that in mind, this DYECREST release proves to be extremely interesting, as it seems to blend both of his strengths into one, with the alternative flare of THY ROW combined with some classic heavy metal flavors.
The album opens on a powerful and rather epic note with “Sacred Sleep,” with hefty backing orchestrations, powerful heavy metal instrumentals, and great vocals. The low end comes in strong, paired with a classic heavy metal guitar sound that has just a whiff of IRON MAIDEN and maybe SYMPHONY X influence before the vocals kick in – great long notes and vibrato, as well as instrumental drama are key elements here. “Man Made God” boots things up even more – it’s a really catchy and dramatic track with a lot of grit and a really great melody in the chorus, making it an early album highlight.
The title track, “Once I Had a Heart,” which you may also recognize as one of the pre-release singles, is a slower and very emotional track, with a lot of oomph packed into the chorus, while “Oathkeeper” packs a punch with a very driven sound and some nice clean guitar moments interspersed in the electric parts. Written about the drama surrounding Jon Schaffer‘s participation in the 2021 attack on the Capitol, it makes sense that there’s a clear ICED EARTH flavor to the music, which is quite brilliantly replicated without sounding blatantly obvious.
“Face the Light” is a really traditional power metal pusher with a great, positive message. The chorus is really catchy and there’s some classic Salo-vocal parts that aren’t quite wails, but ferocity and a little vocal soloing combined, which I always rather enjoy. Oh, and there’s a solid guitar solo as well! “Read My Mind” has some cool effects and extremely punchy parts, as well as some dark grit mixed into the blend, with a bit of that deeply enjoyable alternative flare.
They amp the energy up for “Colder,” which stands out for being upbeat, punchy, and especially for using some very tasteful and subtle backing choirs in the end. Sliding electric guitar lines kick off “The Final Act,” which has moments where it sounds a bit like really old-school BLIND GUARDIAN in their early power metal phase, but again, the influence is minimal in the overall sound. This definitely acts like the storm before the calm then, as the album then finishes things up with a dramatic and passionate finale ballad, “Fire from Your World”; I personally tend to prefer when the last track on the album is a big, bombastic explosion that leaves the listener dying for more, this nevertheless works as an excellent closer due to the high levels of drama, the excellent piano work, and general high degree of passion and emotion.
Ultimately, “Once I Had a Heart” is an extremely solid release and one that’s proven to be quite refreshing in (what I have personally found to be) a bit of a lackluster year of music. In fact, this is probably one of the don’t-miss albums of the year so far!
Written by Bear Wiseman
Tracklist
- Sacred Sleep
- Man Made God
- Once I Had a Heart
- Oathkeeper
- Face the Light
- Read My Mind
- Colder
- The Final Act
- Fire from Your World
Lineup
Mikael Salo – vocals
Jukka Matilainen – bass
Niko Takala – drums
Henri Arola – guitars
Pirkka Ohlis – guitars
Matti Pasanen – guitars
Label
Rockshots Records
