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Mercenary

Through Our Darkest Days

Written by: PP on 03/08/2013 14:41:53

Mercenary have long been considered one of the flagship bands within Danish metal, the torchbearers of consistency and music that has both character and identity. Where most Danish bands are still struggling to write as heavy music as possible for the sake of sounding heavy, Mercenary have pounced forward with their eclectic mixture of progressive metal and melodic death metal, taking best of both worlds to arrive at a sound that's both melodic and infectiously catchy, but also has the punch of a metal band. Their songwriting far surpasses most of their peers not just nationally but also internationally, no small thanks to their brilliant vocalist René Pedersen, whose raspy, yet decipherable scream translates into multiple truly epic moments on their 7th studio album "Through Our Darkest Days".

His ability to seamlessly transition from a growl into a scream, and back into majestic clean vocals is nothing short of breathtaking, but all fans of Mercenary already knew that. What you need to know, then, is that this trend continues on their newest record, where not much has changed sound wise compared to its predecessors. Mercenary still deliver a classy, grandiose sound that's never too theatrical to be an annoyance, but still packs hefty amounts of muscle around its bones for a thick, immersive soundscape that's best experienced through a good set of headphones. Songs like the title track and especially "Dreamstate Machine" are irresistibly catchy for metal songs, whereas "Beyond This Night" shows how to deliver a conventional progressive metal expression in a sublime manner without being overkill either instrumentally or length-wise.

Bands like In Flames, Soilwork, and local names Raunchy and Mnemic come to mind when listening to "Through Our Darkest Days". The first two bring in the melodeath vibes to Mercenary's music, the latter two the modern metal sound. On top of that, the progressive undertones means you're dealing with nuanced and skillfully arranged compositions that, once again, show the rest of the Danish metal scene what excellent songwriting is all about.

Download: A New Dawn, Through Our Darkest Days, Dreamstate Machine
For the fans of: Raunchy, In Flames, Mnemic, Soilwork, Scar Symmetry
Listen: Facebook

Release date 26.07.2013
Noise Art Records / Prosthetic Records