Review Summary: I have seen Vektor’s future, and it is actually bright, not black.
The first thing I noticed when I picked up the album was the cover. The logo and overall cover design is highly reminiscent of a Voivod cover. Immediately, I began to think of them as perhaps a Voivod-esque band, one that sounds nearly like them, worshipping Voivod’s every move. While I thought it was cool that Voivod was getting the respect it deserves from the metal community, I didn’t think this album would be all that great, despite the hype my metal friends had been giving me.
The first track proved me a liar. While there is a clear Voivod influence here, with fantastic jazz influenced riffs and overall atmosphere, Vektor throws everything and the kitchen sink on this album. There are some very black metal-esque chords and riffs, particularly off the spectacularly spooky
Forests of Legend, and there are even vaguely video game sounding elements, especially off
Dark Nebula. The vocalist, David DiSanto, sounds like Chuck Schuldiner of Death fame, except his vocals are even more throat destroying, nearing black metal shrieks at time. They also take a good dose of progressive metal and swirl it into the mix, creating massive songs with extraordinary songwriting. The aforementioned
Forests of Legends and
Dark Nebula are ten-minute plus songs, and the closer,
Accelerating Universe is a thirteen and a half minute song! However, these songs never drag or become boring due to the ever evolving song structures and fantastic musicianship.
Despite all these fantastic elements coming together, the pure thrash at times, the cool black metal vocals and riffs, what really took me aback was the sheer skill of each of the individual members. David also handles guitar duties, shredding back and forth Erik Nelson, each trying to outdo the other, but it comes together beautifully, creating both sheer intensity and technicality, tempered with a good dose of melody. Frank Chin’s manic and pounding drumming drives the songs forward at an intense tempo, and Blake Anderson’s bass manages to keep up with all of it with extraordinarily robust bass lines that put nearly every thrash bassist to shame.
These are the two things that make Vektor great, the individual talent of each of the members and their ability to meld all these influences into one distinct sound, one that is specifically Vektor’s. Any other recent thrash band should move over, these are the kings of modern thrash. Any other thrash album that has come out in recent years, whether created by old stalwarts of the genre or aspiring new kids, should hold this as the gold standard of modern thrash.
Pros:
-Fantastic Dual Guitars
-Great Harsh Vocals
-Robust Bass
-Great Drums
Cons:
-David’s vocals might put off some listeners
Recommended Tracks:
Forests of Legend
Black Future
Destroying the Cosmos
Accelerating Universe
