Temperance - Limitless

Temperance and their mix of symphonic metal bombast and crushing melodic death metal, are back again - and not a moment too soon.You may recall me reviewing Temperance's self-titled debut this time last year and their intriguing blend of the symphonic and melodic death metal genres, fronted by singer Chiara Tricarico and produced by this decade's Jesper Strömblad, Simone Mularoni (DGM). Well, they're back now with Limitless, so let's get to it.

Thankfully, everything that made their debut album so good is still here, with a bit more electronic sheen in the form of some sprightly keyboards. Don't get me wrong, the very satisfying balls and chunk™ is still in place, as heard in the pre-solo section of Save Me (2:49), but there's a closer alignment with the symphonic metal elements (e.g. dramatic orchestration, huge choral backing vocals) that makes the foundation of the band's sound. All in all, if you liked the first album, this is more of what you dug. Works for me!

The Bottom Line: Temperance is a great example of how metal continues to evolve more often and interestingly than any other subgenre of music out there. But rather than just slamming two subgenres together, this band has a thorough understanding of what they're doing - and they do it well.

- Genghis sure wants to rock out...