Album review: Atlas – Sunder

As musical formulas go, Finnish mythology’s dramatic imagery added to modern metal’s clout grabs the attention. Just listen to Tower, the second track on Atlas’ third album, which follows the ominous instrumental opener Sermon Of The Dying Light. It arrives like the pounding of war drums and vocalist Patrik Nuorteva’s marauding vocals giving way to haunting incantations that booming around the hall of a mountain king. It’s a lot to pack into sub-three minutes – a lot of scale, dynamism and sheer destruction. Perhaps that’s why Sunder only has eight tracks.

If you’re expecting more of the same throughout, however, that’s not what Atlas have delivered here. Which is a good thing for those of the belief variety is the spice of life, though perhaps less so for listeners in search of lots of leaden punishment. Admittedly, there’s enough to sate that latter audience, with Salt And Sulfur being similarly hefty and hectic, though its pay off is thinner and less impressive. Anodyne, meanwhile, pushes the poles of its light and dark sides further apart to captivating effect.

On I Whisper Your Name Like A Curse and Coven Of Two, Atlas tackle the subject of amore via potent imagery and Patrik branching into a croon reminiscent of Ville Valo from fellow Finns HIM. It’s a welcome change of pace and a different kind of intensity. Atlas certainly deserve credit for deftly threaded these elements together, approximating a metalcore sound more synonymous with the U.S. than Scandinavia, but they’re impeded by the fact that too many of those constituent elements feel too familiar.

As an example of a sound its creators describe as ‘Northcore’, then, Sunder flies the flag proudly. But on an international stage full of metalcore bands trying to add their spin and make their mark, it’s less able to stand out. There’s enough here to suggest, however, that Atlas are only a bit of evolution away from truly making their mark.

Verdict: 3/5

For fans of: Parkway Drive, Ghost, HIM

Sunder is released on February 20 via Odyssey.