Released on September 23, 2022, Kings of Mercia is the self-titled debut comprises former members of Fates Warning Jim Matheos and Joey Vera. The record is a captivating amalgam of killer heavy, hard rock tempered with the soulfulness of singer Steve Overland and the rhythmic prowess of drummer Simon Phillips.
A departure from the progressive metal that Jim Matheos was writing and performing with Fates Warning, Kings of Mercia is an entirely different beast. It is basically a hard rock band that harkens back to the 70s and 80s with warm, earthy riffs along with the soulful singing of Steve Overland from FM. His vocals remind me of Paul Rogers.
Guitarist Jim Matheos states on writing for the record:
I started writing without any real idea of what direction I wanted to go in or what I was going to do with the material. The first few songs came together quickly and were a bit more straightforward than I'm used to, and I really liked that idea, kind of going back to my early heavy/hard rock roots.
"Wrecking Ball" is a solid heavy rocker and a great opener. It sets the tone for the rest of the album.
"Humankind" is up next, with a stellar guitar riff and it is a very bluesy, soulful vocal from Steve Overland with a memorable chorus.
"Sweet Revenge" has a good off beat riff with some ominous sounding guitars to give it some character. Bass helps drive the verses. "Set the World on Fire" is the fastest song on the album and is a heavy, forward moving song with some progressive rock sounding chords. "Too Far Gone" is a beautiful ballad that changes pace a bit but picks up in the middle section to the end of the song. While "Liberate Me" is nice and heavy, and picks up the pace again.
"Nowhere Man" continues the pace with excellent, catchy riffs. "Everyday Angels" is a beautiful acoustic ballad with a shimmering opening. "Is it Alright" has excellent backing vocals and reminds me of early Jefferson Starship. "Your Life" closes out the record with some creepy incidental music to start things off, then kicks in with a nice Black Sabbath type riff with some progressive type chords to spice things up. The song is a call to arms to take charge of your life.
With Fates Warning on "hiatus", Jim Matheos revisits his hard rock roots with King of Mercia with a killer and soulful guitar riffs and vocals. Even though the album is pretty straightforward, it is a sophisticated hard rock band that returns to hard rocks' 70s and 80s heyday.
Band
- Jim Matheos: Guitar
- Steve Overland: Vocals
- Simon Phillips: Drums
- Joey Vera: Bass
Comments
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment