Australian band BELTANE FIRE, not to be confused with the radically different UK 80’s band of the same name, has been a feature of the Australian rock scene for a number of years, a project instigated and lead by vocalist and pagan enthusiast Soda Lee. “Spellbound” is their debut album, a production that had been in the works for almost a decade when it was released towards the end of 2015.
The band’s self described style of music is hard rock, which is kind of appropriate I suspect. Their palette is somewhat broader set than merely hard rock as one might typically describe it, but by and large I think this covers the overall impression of the intensity of their music fairly well.
Those fond of classic 70’s hard rock built upon a noticeable blues foundation will not find too much material of interest here however, although a token boon or two is thrown in that direction as well here. Instead this is a band that explore what I’d describe as a watered down version of heavy metal, and one with at least half a foot well inside the New Wave of British Heavy Metal territories at that.
The riff constructions, harmony soloing and galloping bass of classic UK heavy metal of the 80’s comes across as if not a foundation then at least a frequent visitor to the compositions of this production, but with the guitars toned down a bit in intensity to produce a tight and smooth sound that feels more like hard rock than heavy metal. Occasionally the band will flirt with some hair metal oriented escapades as well, alongside classic hard rock and also one case of what I’d describe as a blend of hard rock and 80’s new wave. And to conclude this album Beltane Fire also decides to explore a sound that to my ears at least isn’t too far away from the moved Black Sabbath made when they crafted the classic Heaven and Hell album way back when. Careful and often elegant use of keyboards is also a feature in the music of Beltane Fire, and while there is a case or two present of when the bands should have shied away from the tangents, the keyboard solo on Priestess the main guilty party, this addition to their sound is most often an elevating feature.
What will make or break this band is how one enjoys the lead vocals of Soda Lee though. Her voice lacks the punch and power one would expect from a hard rock or heavy metal singer, and when she tries to push her voice it’ll either end up as wobbling vibrato or as a raspy but weak snarl. Her vocals lacks that aggressive power most people will expect from this type of music, and when pushing her voice overly much she does have a slight tendency to lose track of the voice as well, at least as I experience the songs on this production. Not in a big way, as I am fairly sensitive to such matters, but enough to be a detrimental experience to people who are sensitive to this aspect of music in general. At some point I noted that it sounded like a sensual jazz vocalist tried her hand at hard rock and metal on this album, and while that most likely isn’t the reality of it all I rather suspect that having that thought in mind may be a point to ponder when deciding whether or not spending time to get familiar with this production is worthwhile.
Tight, toned down hard rock with something of a foundation in classic early 80’s heavy metal is what Australian band Beltane Fire provides us with on their debut album “Spellbound”. The musicians are excellent, the compositions generally holds a good quality with compelling features as well, but the lead vocals will be something of an acquired taste. Those who enjoy vocalist Soda Lee’s rather less than common voice and vocal style and otherwise find this type of hard rock to be generally interesting should find this album to be a rewarding experience as well, but this is very much a case of an album that warrants to be checked out before purchase due to this specific aspect.
My rating: 70/100
—
Track list:
Crooked Smile; Club Voodoo; Your Move; White Spirit High; Priestess; Relentless; Forever; The Burning; Bring on the Knife; Wolfman; Lady of Avalon; Land of the Living
