Meridian – The 4th Dimension
Release Date: 23rd September 2022
Label: From The Vaults
Bandcamp
Genre: Heavy Metal
FFO: Tygers Of Pan Tang, Pretty Maids, Eclipse.
Review By: Liam True
It feels as though the classic heavy metal sound has been quiet for a while as the metal world develops its sound. That’s where Denmark’s Meridian comes in. Taking inspiration from the 1980’s NWOBHM scene and giving it a more modern touch. And it works wonders. The guitar tones are that of the 80’s and the vocals are as powerful as they are sharp to the touch.
Album opener Warning Shots is an anthem in itself as the vocals of Lars Märker pierce your ears with his almost supersonic sound as guitarists Marting Anderson & Marco Angioni perform an exorcism on their fretboards to create the riffs and solo’s they’ve created.
Life Is Today could be the soundtrack to an 80’s montage, as it’s as catchy as it is cheesy. Stay & Follow Your Heart show the true force of drummer Klaus Agerbo, as while it’s not as challenging as other songs, the simplicity really shows how good of a drummer he is as on Stay he’s a speed machine but on Follow Your Heart he slows down and that’s what really sticks with you is the transitions he can make.
Trust & Dreamers are where Märker really shows the height of his vocals as they cut through glass with the duel guitars of Anderson & Angiono. It also has the best music video I’ve ever seen. Complete with the 80’s VHS style tint to make it feel nostalgic.
Say That You Want Me is a sleazy slow burner that shows the band could have easily dominated the Sunset Strip back in the 80’s even going up against Mötley Crüe & WASP to take charge over the clubs. The Road Back To Hell is a heavy tune for the band as the Malmsteen like guitar tones are replaced for a crunchier angrier tone while the soaring vocals are still in place, it feels like a slow marching siege onto the gates of hell itself.
Remove Your Crown keeps up with the crunchy guitars as synth backgrounds really bring out bassist Peter Brunn’s baritone noise to help with the song that could easily be placed anywhere in the Judas Priest catalogue. Ending song, and title track, The Fourth Dimension, is almost proggy in its effort to stand out as the album closer and title track. And it works well as the song is a great closer.
From start to finish, the record phenomenal. The almost power metal like sounds of the first half of the album is impressive as the band’s genre is heavy metal. But when you progress to the second half, it’s a genre change again. The crunchy guitars are almost grunge sounding. The final two songs are almost progressive metal and add substance to the album, which make it stand out more to a wider audience. It’ll appeal to both power metal and hard rock scenes and bring in more of a diverse fan base in the process. An amazing album, only let down by the fact that it finishes.
(5 / 5)
