RSS Feed


TABERAH
Necromancer

Dust On The Tracks (2013)
Rating: 7.5/10

Hailing from Hobart in Tasmania, Taberah are a fiery Aussie combo who’ve been playing their fierce brand of power metal since 2005, although it took them some six years to get their 2011 debut slab, The Light Of Which I Dream, out. The course the band has taken has certainly done them no damage, with various gigs under their belts over the last decade and a brace of demos. This finally brings them round to album number two, Necromancer, which is a solid return to form.

The band are fronted by Jonathon Barwick, who, alongside Myles Flood, is responsible for those well-polished riffs and leads. The pair are aided by the stormy drums of Tom Brockman, and the strong bass of David Walsh. When the instruments unite the noise can be rather accessible to the ears, Taberah mixing classic metal with a modern twist along with a healthy, anthemic texture – giving the record an upbeat impression.

Necromancer is an 11-track composition that ends with a decent cover of Deep Purple’s 1974 classic ‘Burn’. But where the band really sparkles is with tracks such as ‘Dying Wish’, which have a strong, almost basic 80s sensation both musically and lyrically. Taberah play a driving, forceful brand of metal that melts together thrashy elements with clinical power metal nuances, chugging along like a tamer, cleaner Anthrax dosed up with an injection of Helloween.

Barwick has a clean set of pipes that enable the record to rise above the mediocre, and the songs stick in your head just after one listen. Album opener ‘2012’ is an instant success, relying on a cool, melodic chorus and those soaring vocals.

The band are able to take a rather tired formula and make it shine, especially on the simple yet sturdy ‘Burning In The Moonlight’. While the title track is one of the heaviest moments on the record, combining gothic orchestration with a commanding set of riffs which work perfect with that backbone of drum and bass.

Necromancer is packed to the brim with tales of swords, sorcery and hellish combat. While this can be predictable at times, Taberah make it clear that this is what they are all about – nothing more and nothing less – and so tracks such as the stormy ‘Warlord’ really do work. The band also provide some nice subtle touches too, throwing in a semi-ballad with the aching ‘Don’t Say You’ll Love Me’ and then completely pulverising with the all-out mayhem of ‘The Hammer Of Hades’. The fastest track on the album, ‘The Hammer Of Hades’ features some of the most melodramatic lyrics, including, “On the flaming wings of Pegasus I ride”.

The only real negative of such a record (apart from the throwaway instrumental ‘One Goon Bag Later’) is its rather stereotypical subject matter and balls out intention to do nothing else but rock. But hey, not everything has to be mind-blowingly technical or overtly progressive.

Taberah are something akin to finding a good, albeit unknown fantasy book in a second hand store, because Necromancer has a certain draw to it that is just so damn warming in its celebration of the mythical.

Neil Arnold

<< Back to Album & EP Reviews



Related Posts via Categories
Share