Ankor What?
Ankor are purveyors of melodic heavy metal, a sub-genre that admittedly has a sizeable fanbase especially in mainland Europe but one that I don't particularly care for. When I reach for some metal I like it to be a little rougher and a little tougher. That's not to say Ankor aren't worth listening to, My Own Angel has its moments but we've got to accept the fact that no every band that releases a record is going to be your new favourite. Sad but true. With that in mind and in the spirit of tolerance, what's the deal with Arkon's first album of English language tunes?
Opening with Remaining sets out the band's stall: sweet vocals from singer Rosa De La Cruz, contrasted with the rough hewn vocals of guitarist and songwriter David Romeu, rocky guitar topped with synth atmospherics and solid rhythms. Solid being the key word here - there's nothing massively wrong with all of this it's just not overly interesting. The lyrics essay a certain strength over adversity motif "Leaving behind all bad times/Buried forever, once for all/Maybe we can, maybe we arrive/We will do it. Oh yeah we still believe". Hardly the stuff of Satan's finest. The synths take a more prominent place on Completely Frozen accompanied by swooping lead guitar and Evanescence alike melody. Lovelorn It Would Be Easier goes for the heartstrings but is awfully wimpy. Awaiting Your Awakening goes for a Maiden riff in it's opening passages topped off with pinched harmonics before heading back to safe territory. No Matter What and the drippy power ballad centrepiece My Own Angel continue in this mid-Atlantic manner and for five more tracks making it this album nothing if not consistent and coherent. Ankor definitely know what they're aiming for and it's not me (although the epic Reborn is pretty nifty).
Ultimately, this is about different strokes for different folks, I enjoy metal for different reasons than the members of Ankor do. The folk who enjoy the sound of slightly gothic modern rock might enjoy this, as for me, with my tolerance exhausted I'm off to cleanse my palette with a spin of the new Goatwhore album.