Souldrinker - Semper Fidelis
CD Info
2013
Self Released / Germany
4 Tracks
English Lyrics 
Have you ever heard about Souldrinker? They are a young German band that was created by Markus Pohl (Mystic Prophecy), Steffen Theurer (ex-Symphorce), Chris Rodens and Alex Gindu. Actually the boys were all members of the band Watch me Bleed and just released an album called Kingdom. They were all joking about addind melody to their extreme Metal music but couldn't find a suitable singer, until they met Iris Boanta from The Mystery. And finally Souldrinker was born, a melodic death Metal band. In early 2013, they released a 4-track EP called Semper Fidelis, and here we are with a mix between the beauty of the powerful female voice of Iris and the violence of Alex’s grunts.
I discovered Souldrinker last March when they opened for Serenity and Visions of Atlantis. I must say that I was totally captivated by their music, so I decided to explore their music and universe further. Semper Fidelis starts with a beautiful , calm intro called "Dawn" that is mainly made up of piano. My little weakness.
We let ourselves be lulled by the melody of the peaceful notes until the first song, "Sixteen Men of Tain", starts. Souldrinker shot an official music video for the track, which is kind of the driving song of the EP.
Energic riffs open the show, and Iris Boanta shows us all the power of her voice. She makes me thinks of Doro in a way; however, her voice sounds darker and rougher, and is combined with Alex's deep and violent grunts with perfection. This kind of voice isn't very common in female-fronted Metal bands, and brings something new to the genre. Also, we often hear features between grunts and classical voices (the Beauty & Beast metal style), but it’s rarely between grunts and rock/strong voices like Iris's one. That is a really good point then, and allows Souldrinker to stand out from all these kinds of bands (even though I also love them).
After "Sixteen Men of Tain" comes "To all that is Lost", which is a heavier and melodic song that mixes several elements from classical Heavy Metal and Death Metal with success. At the middle of the song comes a powerful guitar solo -- definitely from an expert musician -- accompanied by brutal percussions and bass rythms, immediately followed by Iris starting over the chorus. No time to rest!
Finally, "Burn the Pact" is the last song of this too-short EP. Guitar riffs are pervasive, and this is something really good to hear since I've the impression that we don't always hear the guitar as much in other female-fronted Metal bands as in Souldrinker. Here, there is no doubt that guitarist Markus Pohl wants to be heard! Alex's grunts match perfectly with Iris's voice in this song, probably the most remarkable feature of the EP to my ears.
To conclude, I can only recommend Semper Fidelis. This EP is really promising, and is definitely made with professionalism by all the musicians of the band. I am very curious to hear the CD, and if Souldrinker ever plays in your town, I advise you to go and see them. They already feel quite comfortable on stage and they have too much energy to share with the audience. Let's wait for the CD then, and you can also read the live report of Souldrinker that I made from their show in Lyon last October with Serenity, Visions of Atlantis and Evenpath.
8 / 10
