Akphaezya – Anthology II

1. Preface
2. Chrysalis
3. Beyond The Sky
4. Khamsin
5. Reflections
6. Awake
7. The Golden Vortex of Kaltaz
8. The Secret Of Time
9. Stolen Tears
10. Trance: H.L.4
11. The Bottle Of Life

    Jazz-metal weirdoes Akphaezya crash land with an almighty racket on what is one hell of an interesting debut in ‘Anthology II’. The issue of the mysterious lack of an ‘Anthology I’ does not seem to bother these French maniacs as they plough their way through a set of songs which happily attempt to wield a surprising range of musical styles – with mixed results.

    Despite their best efforts (which are admittedly decent enough at times), Akphaezya often struggle to contain the evidently huge array of music genres in which they relish. There are certainly highlights though; ‘Khamsin’ is an irresistibly sexy, jazz-laden number, whereas ‘The Golden Vortex of Kaltaz’ catches the listener completely unawares with a thrashy, Arch Enemy-inspired barrage of noise.

    It is at this point that the vocal talents of singer Nehl Aëlin become clearer, as her ability to effortlessly skip between Gossow-esque death metal growls and sultry, delicate melodies are impressive and a rarity in many female metal singers. It is her voice which holds this album decidedly above mediocrity, and for that alone, ‘Anthology II’ is worth at least a few spins.

Reviewed by Merlin Alderslade

‘Anthology II’ is out now on Ascendance Records