Got to get your genres right. Atlas of Elysian are a Welsh metalcore band. It says so right here. Normally, that is good as metalcore usually means that these words would normally be written on autopilot. Easy money, as all those prerequisite sonic motifs will be there and you can be certain that, amongst the guttural growling and percussive power, the Devil is certain to be namechecked.
But, in the warm light of this sunny day, is all that true of Atlas of Elsyian’s album “Divination”? Not entirely. It is true that the aforementioned growls and accelerated percussion are present and correct yet, despite the full speed ahead approach of most of this album, this band seems curiously lacking in the aggression that music in this genre usually thrives upon and, more often than not, melody seems more of a concern to them.
There is, of course, a degree of lyrical pretension that would never be mistaken for poetry but you kind of expect that of a metalcore band yet, even within a song stamped with the mark of conventionality like “Whispers Of Lumeria”, there is enough lyrical substance on display to suggest that Atlas of Elysian have more to say than most and, as the title track “Divination” soon proves, they do possess the eloquence to get their message across.
Whilst “Divination” might still be an assault on the senses – especially if you happen to be hungover – it is also an album that you doesn’t require you to be a convert to metalcore to appreciate.
Available from Bandcamp.