#40 - Top of 2018

Avatar - Avatar Country (Century Media)

After their excellent previous effort (Feathers and Flesh), Avatar released their 7th album on January 2018, going again for a unifying album concept! The story here revolves around the King of Avatar Country and his rule over its dominion. The album kicks off with acoustic interlude "Glory to the King" and breaks into the melodic death metal "Legend of the King", which is about the most straightforward track you are gonna find in the album. "The King Welcomes You To The Avatar Country” leans towards Country rock avenues with clear influences from AC/DC, while "King's Harvest" sounds like a bastard son from the backlog of The Haunted that got remastered from Devin Townsend while hanging out with members of Faith No More. "The King Wants You" is more within the melodic range of a "typical" Avatar song, but remains a very groovy and upbeat piece of music. "The King Speaks" is a REALLY weird and random interlude that acts as a break before the second part of the album.  The next two tracks "A Statue of the King" and "King after King" are probably the best bit of the album combining elements that have made Avatar such household names in the last years, mixing melodic passages with sheer guitar brutality and the theatrical flair that has truly elevated Avatar above the rubble of the current music scene. The album closes with two awesome instrumental passages and clocks at under 45 minutes. This is probably the only fault of the album, it sounds truly awesome, but feels as just the first part of something bigger. Nevertheless it is a must listen for fans of the band and a worthy follow-up to Feathers and Flesh.

92.1


Below are the music videos for "The King Welcomes You To The Avatar Country” , "The King Wants You" and "Statue of the King".