Shangren – 2009 Demo
Genres: Melodic Death Metal, Folk Metal
Label: Unsigned
An now we’ve heard it all! Folk metal that blends the merciless attack of melodic death metal and the colorful mythology of the Far East! Not only is this demo original in concept and execution, but it also boasts a squeaky clean production that lends to the powerful experience that is Shangren! And I shout a hearty “FUCK YEAH!” to master of ceremonies, one Leonard Ong (key tickler from Starforge) from for his tour de force performance on all instruments on this five song demo! The vocals bounce from a brutal death roar (akin to Johan Hegg of Amon Amarth) to a blackened rasp (in the song The Battle Of Water And Fire, he kind of sounds like Harvey Firestein. Funny and cool!) that blend very well. The riffing is heavy, fast and melodic and the solos play their part in making you believe you’re being transported to a mythical realm of the Monkey King and Sky Dragon within the Jade Empire! As far as I can tell, it’s not quite traditional, but it sure hit’s the spot as far as entertaining and fascinating metal goes!
Overall: Hopefully, this demo is the beginning of more Oriental folk metal! I don’t know how long exactly I’ll have to wait to hear the full length album Mr. Ong has planed, but I can tell you that it’s not coming out fast enough for me!
10/10
www.myspace.com/shangrenmetal
Originally posted at E-MetalSpace