Haken is definitely one of my favourite prog metal bands and so when Charlie Griffiths, one of the guitar pickers of Haken decided to release a new solo album I was really looking forward to hearing it. In 2022 Griffiths released his solo debut album and Gods Of Pangaea is the follow-up, continuing with an exploration into an ancient forgotten world, colliding with the human centric planet we inhabit today. For listeners who are not familiar with trash metal I will give you fair warning as this new album is really a thrash-metal album, packed with influences from bands like Metallica, Megadeth, Exodus, Testament and even Slayer... This truly heavy album opens with Tyrannicide, a fast, trashy Testament-like song filled with angry and fast guitar riffs, hooks, and solos, setting the unadulterated trash metal tone for this album. The title track and The Forbidden Zone are not as neck breaking fast as the opening song but Griffiths riffs, hooks and the vocals as well are again quite trashy indeed. Griffiths is joined by drummer Darby Todd (Devin Townsend), bass player Conner Green, his bandmate in Haken and on vocals Griffiths is assisted by Daniël de Jongh (Textures), Vladimir Lalic (Organised Chaos), Rody Walker (Protest The Hero) and Tommy Rogers (Between The Buried & Me). As much as I like the music of Tiktaalika, although it is quite heavy, fast, and loud, I definitely loathe the death metal growls, like for instance in The Forbidden Zone or The Lost Continent. My favourite track is the bonus track Chicxulub, an instrumental song, where Griffiths really excels as a guitar player, proving that he is one of the best heavy guitarists in the game; a guitar virtuoso indeed and if you like your music heavy, trashy and loud then this is an album not to be missed. However, for 100% prog rock fans Gods Of Pangaea will be way TOO loud and in your face!! Really a shame that some vocalists made use of their death metal growls, otherwise I would have given this album a star more for sure.... *** Martien Koolen (edited by Dave Smith) Where to buy? |
