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SKINHER
Heartstruck

Aural Music (2023)
Rating: 9/10

This is a wonderfully evocative, infectious and nostalgic slab of Greek metal with one foot pressed firmly into the 80s. Gloriously melodic, Skinher – the metal project of Hail Spirit Noir keyboard player Haris (aka Kyle Skinher) – comes armed with a retro piece of cover artwork and a fiery sound that is wonderfully produced and admirably crisp.

If you like 80s metal, particularly acts such as Dokken, then you’re gonna love this AOR-tinged heap. This is mesmeric metal from the off, but the real joy is its horror-themed creepiness which comes to the fore by the smooth vocal tones of Cons Marg, who comes into his own on the sinister vibes of ‘The Maniac Is Back’ which is not a world away from Alice Cooper’s ‘He’s Back (The Man Behind The Mask)’.

This is arguably one of the most fluid albums I’ve heard in a while. I tend to slot this alongside the likes of the recent Wanted opus Chain Reaction, except this has a beautiful, heart-warming feel even with its spooky themes. The tremendous axe work on opener ‘You Are Next!’ enables the cut to become an immediate late night radio hit, in my mind anyway. I could easily imagine such a song appearing on the soundtrack of an 80s horror movie. And the gems just keep on coming as the combo fires up nostalgic hit after nostalgic hit.

The synth-led ‘Interstellar Love Hysteria’ taps into that Stranger Things vibe with its eerie tinkles and big melodies, ‘Night Cull’ darkens the atmosphere again as those synths echo amidst the swirls of luminous fog before the guitars, bass and drums come together and result in a driving melody blessed by a soaring chorus.

The axe-work throughout this dynamic opus is also to be applauded. ‘He Sees You’ is a riveting instrumental that leads us into the twilight pleasures of the galloping ‘Self-Eating Creatures’ and the equally mesmeric magic of ‘Dance With The Dead’. Meanwhile, closer ‘Josephine’ just gets me reaching for the horror VHS tapes even more with its snaking soloing and half-hinted demonic frazzles.

Heartstruck is a spell-binding debut opus that sounds incredibly fresh even with its claws embedded in the classic era of shock metal. Grab this and make every day Halloween.

Neil Arnold

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