Sinister Realm hail from Allentown Pennsylvania. Though this is their debut album (excluding last year’s 4-track demo), the band members are no newcomers including bass player John Gaffney from Pale Divine and drummer Darin McCloskey of Falcon fame.

Sinister Realm’s music combines elements from classic 80’s mid tempo metal, doom metal, and heavy 70’s rock very effectively. The riffs and rhythm section are heavy and carry a “Sabbath-y” groove, the solos have a 70's - early 80's vintage virtuosity to their sound, while singer Alex Kristof posesses a fitting masculine, gritty but at the same time warm voice. The compositions range from doom-y slow pacers to mid-tempo anthems with an epic, imposing atmosphere like on “Mongol Horde” which is my favorite track alongside opener “Into the Depths of Hell” & "The Demon Seed".

Fans of Pale Divine and Falcon will definitely find familiar elements in Sinister Realm’s debut. If you haven’t listened to either of these bands, but fancy yourself some ball-sy classic metal with Sabbath/Candlemass touches, then this one's well worth the investment.

Cheerz to Shadow Kingdom Records for another worthy release!


http://www.myspace.com/enterthesinisterrealm

Review by: Asgardlord