Laying the groundwork through a powerful debut album The End of Darkness released in 2020, US power / progressive metal act EchoSoul returns for the follow-up Time of the Dragon. Rob Lundgren returns as the main vocalist, with the rhythm section duties under the capable hands of bassist Randy Walton and drummer Tyler Witte as main songwriter / guitarist Guy Hinton takes the band in broader directions that can be heavier yet more melodic. Along with these stylistic additions, the lyrics take a full-on conceptual storyline about the end of days, a dragon’s rise and fall, and the consequences twisted with tragedy, political intrigue, and conspiracy/ suicide aspects.
Guy’s guitar abilities shape the record in dynamic fashion – incorporating everything from power, progressive, speed, thrash, traditional and even modern/extreme elements solely dependent on the atmosphere / textures necessary to execute the song’s needs. One minute he could be very clean in refined restraint for the opening verses of “Sister Suicide”, then bounce into Nevermore meets Dream Theater / Symphony X-like pastures for “Hollowed Ground” – while his lead breaks contain the right fluid dexterity against trained shred chops you want for this kind of band. The robust vocals of Rob Lundgren encapsulate a mix of European and American mentors, everyone from Russell Allen and Matt Barlow to Andi Deris or Ralf Scheepers comes to mind through the speedier title cut and majestic “Die Demon Die” (the latter featuring an asset from Guy in the extreme scream department).
The sequencing of the record plays a big part in long-term retention – blast beats sprout up in an interesting Steel Prophet-ish fashion during the epic seven-minute “Path of the Righteous” before shifting into a doom-like, exotic progressive outing where the galloping triplets and time signature tempo moves keep interest on high. A few guests appear to color the record a bit more, including Andy LaRocque and Joseph Michael to name two in particular – but the stars of the show are the main quartet of musicians, as they deftly navigate their power/progressive metal abilities as seasoned professionals. While many would push an instrumental like “Split” towards the early part of an album, EchoSoul instead use this virtuoso-oriented outing in the latter half to throw a variety of power, thrash, and uplifting chord sequences at you that’s still very catchy due to the main riffs and runs.
Hopefully there will be enough interest now that we are two records deep for EchoSoul to possibly get some live shows in the mix – even if it’s the occasional, special festival appearance. You don’t hear many American power / progressive metal acts like this in the current marketplace – making Time of the Dragon an energetic sophomore platter that takes on a multi-sensory, outer universe experience that will entertain all fans of these genres for years to come.