Visions of Atlantis' 'Pirates II - Armada' - Album Review

I am not sure that I can think of a band who has produced their best work 'late' in their career without making a significant shift in sound in a more stark manner than Austria's Visions of Atlantis. Despite not being an 'old' band by any meaningful metric, they are currently in their 24th year - and their recent output has significantly outstripped their original achievements. A band like Anathema, in my opinion, also produced their best work at the end of their lifespan - but Anathema's sound changed hugely over the years so their debut and final albums cannot really be compared in any meaningful way. This is not the case with Visions of Atlantis, though, whose folky and nautical brand of symphonic metal has essentially been in place since their 2002 debut album Eternal Endless Infinity - it is just that the quality of the material has significantly improved. Nothing that the band released prior to 2018 really did anything for me, but the band's current era started back in 2013 when frontwoman Clémentine Delauney came on board - and her appointment eventually led 2018's The Deep & the Dark which, in my view, is where Visions of Atlantis really kicked things up a notch. Even The Deep & the Dark was a bit of a transitional album for the band, with a mixture current and older members contributing to it - but it showed what Delauney brought to the band as songwriter, and later the same year she was joined by frontman Michele Guaitoli and the current era got underway proper. Only drummer Thomas Caser remains from the band's early days, with guitarist Christian Douscha and bassist Herbert Glos both joining in 2017 - with the latter not actually contributing to The Deep & the Dark. Visions of Atlantis have a long and messy history line-up-wise, then, but the journey has certainly been worth it - as in recent years they have been responsible for some of the best symphonic metal produced. The Deep & the Dark was a glimpse of what was to come, and it remains a fun and up-tempo album, but on both 2019's Wanderers (which I reviewed here) and 2022's Pirates (which I also reviewed here) the band's current line-up really grew and improved. Not only musically, too, as the band have also cultivated a strong image in recent years - pushing their nautical and piratical themes in a big way both when it comes to their artwork, dress, and live shows. I saw the band live last year, and will catch them again later this year, and they were fantastic - with just enough costume and schtick to create a memorable show without going over-the-top and making the theming a millstone. They are clearly wedded to it, though, as Pirates II - Armada, the band's ninth album which was released earlier this month, shows. It follows on from Pirates two years ago, but it feels as if they have mined a bit more of a progressive seam this time around. Many of the songs here retain the band's usual hooky approach, but some of the tracks feel a bit more involved than usual - so it feels like a bit of a development compared to the previous efforts. This may be as a result of Guaitoli becoming the band's main songwriter, with Delauney the chief lyricist. Guaitoli's songwriting contributions have increased with each passing album, but generally the band have relied quite a lot on their producers, first Frank Pitters and then Felix Heldt, for songwriting, too. Heldt's contributions are greatly reduced this time, with Guaitoli spearheading the whole album.

There are still plenty of anthems here, which I will get to, but the opening couple of songs showcase that slightly more involved sound detailed. The first two songs here feel like one longer piece - with the slow-burning opening number acting as a lengthy intro to the more hard-hitting follow-up. To Those Who Chose to Fight kicks things off, then, with a delicate flute melody, courtesy of Sandro Friedrich - which soon gives way to Delauney's voice, as she sings gently against a background of subtle strings and distant percussion. Unlike much of the band's dense sound, this opening number is very restrained. It is all about Delauney's voice, with the occasional keyboard melody and percussive boom, and once Douscha first guitar riff crashes in it transitions to The Land of the Free - which is very much classic Visions of Atlantis in sound, despite the more involved arrangement being retained. Caser's busy drumming keeps the first verse ticking along nicely, with a strong guitar crunch contrasting well with the opening number, but there are moments which hark back to that simplicity. Pre-chorus sections see the strings from the first song return, with Delauney, and later Guaitoli, singing alone against them - before a mid-paced chorus takes a more dramatic turn. Delauney dominates vocally, but Guaitoli takes over for the second verse - and the two join forces for the chorus, which is the first of the album's many big hooks. Delauney sings more than Guaitoli throughout the album, which is typical, but the vocal arrangements are well-struck as always - and the two singers compliment each other well. Throw in a busy guitar solo from Douscha, too, and The Land of the Free is a great way to kick off the album - following on from its slow-burning predecessor. When it comes to big hooks, though, Monsters, which follows is one of the album's most anthemic pieces. The next few songs have all been released as singles, so they focus on the band's hookier side - and Monsters follows on from the other great singles the band have released in recent years. The opening symphonic motif, which wraps around a driving guitar riff, gives away the chorus' main hook, but this is a clearly a song designed to lodge itself in the brain - and it succeeds easily thanks to its soaring melodies. Delauney and Guaitoli take a verse each, with both singers pushing themselves vocally towards the chorus in each with some higher notes - whilst Delauney even unleashes some pseudo-operatic vocals during the chorus, which allows for a transition back into the main symphonic hook. Another shredded solo adds some metallic weight to the song, and it is clear that this is going to become a live favourite for a number of years to come.

Similarly, Tonight I'm Alive is full of hooks - but it showcase the band's folky side a bit more. It is an up-tempo rocker, but there are folk instruments, again from Friedrich, utilised throughout - with the opening of the song particularly organic-sounding before the main riffing kicks in. Vocally, too, the song feels more rapid-fire, with the two singers trading lines back-and-forth in more of a typical duet manner - rather than dominating particular parts of the song. This back-and-forth works really well, and it brings the best out of both - and there is an urgency in their deliveries which suits the percussive and upbeat song. The chorus is another big moment, too, and it could well be the album's hookiest moment thanks to Dalauney's smooth and heartfelt vocals. Armada, which was the first song from the album to be released online, is more of a balance of the band's hooky side and their more bombastic side. The opening symphonic strings feel a little darker than many of the bouncier melodies which have been featured so far and Douscha's riffing emphasises this. Symphonic metal can sometimes neuter guitarists, but I have generally found Douscha's riffing to be a bit more potent than can often be the case - and he generally finds space for a guitar solo, too. The main riff here is pretty heavy, then, with Caser's fast double bass drumming giving the opening a rapid feel - although the song is more dynamic overall which much of the verses generally being a bit more stripped back with dense strings, warm vocals, and the occasional folky gang vocal chant. The song builds towards the chorus, though, which is much heavier - with more gang vocals and some excellent harmonising between the band's two main singers. Dancing strings and pulsing orchestrations keep the song feeling dramatic, and there is a great instrumental section which features a bombastic symphonic breakdown which then leads into a shredded guitar solo. The Dead of the Sea builds on the heavier aspects of the previous song and it is the first of two songs here over seven minutes long - showcasing that slightly more progressive feel detailed previously. The song opens very slowly, with Guaitoli singing in a delicate manner against some dense strings, but the song soon morphs into a pretty twisty mid-paced track with darker-sounding riffing and gothic overtones. I would not say that the song is bombastic as some of the others here. The strings are generally used in a more atmospheric and mood-creating manner - which means that the song feels heavier overall. The chorus does feel a bit more upbeat, with the two singers again joining forces in a powerful manner, but much of the rest of the song is very guitar-driven - with a slower pace overall and a few breaks to allow organic instruments and the strings to shine. Guaitoli also seems to have the spotlight on him a bit more vocally, here, and he utilises a slightly creepy tone during the slower sections to fit in with the song's winding and gothic tones.

Ashes to the Sea is much shorter, but it also opens slowly - with some sparkling keyboards and Delauney's warm voice setting the tone for the ballad which follows. Given the bombastic and up-tempo songs which have come before, this slower number is welcome - and it proves to offer respite following the lengthier previous cut. Both singers take turns, and harmonise well during the chorus, but the rest of the band generally take a backseat - with strings and distant percussion making up the song's basis before Friedrich adds a pipe solo. Hellfire returns to something much more upbeat and typical - with the fast-paced track returning a sense of urgency to the album. Douscha's machine gun riffing early on sets the tone for the fast song to follow, whilst busy orchestration whip up plenty of excitement. Whilst parts of the verses are a little more sparse and bass-heavy, this is generally a song which is pretty relentless. Guaitoli's voice adds some heaviness to the latter portions of each verse, which build towards one of the most fist-pumping choruses in the band's history. This song is going to be another live staple thanks for the opportunity for crowd participation during the chorus - with big gang vocal chants and Delauney's pseudo-operatic vocal hooks proving to be a winning combination. Collide reins it in somewhat pace-wise, with it instead being a bit more deliberate overall. It is a short song, but it manages to create a crunchy yet floaty sound which feels a bit different for the band - and I like the carefree attitude of the chorus mixed with some of the doomier riffing found elsewhere. The folky melodies of the chorus are not typical of the band's usual style, but Delauney delivers them convincingly, and the verses feel much more slow-burning thanks to the heavy guitar tones used by Douscha. Given that the song is pretty short, too, there is a pretty lengthy guitar solo included. As such, the song is a real mix of different vibes despite it not being much longer than three minutes. It is a song which showcases the album's wider relative variety with another memorable chorus thrown in.

Magic of the Night feels like a real throwback to the symphonic metal peak of the 2000s - as it is a simple song which is based around poppy hooks with a folky background and plenty of dramatic strings. There is less guitar riffing this time, with the guitars generally just chugging away in the background, with the main musical motif early on being a pipe melody. It is very hooky, though, and presents the band's folky side in a big way, whilst Glos' bass tends to dominate during the simpler verses. This is a song which is all about its chorus, though. There are lots of memorable choruses here, but the chorus here is easily the album's most poppy. Visions of Atlantis are always hooky but they are rarely so obviously pop-influenced - but it works in the context of the old-school symphonic metal arrangement. It almost feels quaint in a way, but the song is a lot of fun thanks to these hooks and a lengthy pipe solo - showing that the band got their money's worth when it came to Friedrich's session! Given that this album has generally been a pretty upbeat one, a second ballad in the form of Underwater is welcome - with Delauney singing in a warm and heartfelt manner against some rumbling piano melodies. The verses are essentially just vocals and the piano, with the occasional distant percussion and string addition, whilst the chorus feels a little bigger with more of a dense string arrangement - although later chorus renditions are bigger again, with Caser's drums building up the rest of the band joining in and adding some weight. The guitars and pipes join forces later for a brief instrumental section - and the song retains its slow feel despite the later heaviness. The album then comes to a close with the lengthy Where the Sky and Ocean Blend - the other song to breach the seven minute mark. It is unsurprisingly another song which is a bit more diverse, then, with a heavy, gothic opening which soon gives way to Delauney unleashing some classically-inspired vocals against a slow-burning string backing. Delauney really pushes herself throughout the whole song, too, and she is at her most operatic here - which allows Guatoli to be the counter to such, with his snarling vocals dominating during some of the song's heavier and faster sections. He even unleashes a few throaty, higher screams, sounding quite a bit like Tobias Sammet in the process, whilst the two singers team up for what is easily the album's most dramatic and symphonic chorus - with lots of choral and operatic vocals. Elsewhere, the song is riffy and hard-driving, with plenty of venomous guitar riffs and fast double bass drumming, whilst Douscha's guitar solo is full of lightning-fast shredded runs. It is the sort of song which builds on lots of the ideas featured throughout the album as well as showcasing that slight progressive bent which has been referenced a few times. It feels like a proper album closer, too, and the epic and dramatic piece ends the album on a real high. Visions of Atlantis' recent run of albums has been excellent, and they have easily been the most prolific and impressive symphonic metal band new releases-wise since 2018. This era has taken the band to the next level, and with Pirates II - Armada the band continue to grow and stake their claim as one of the genre's best.

The album was released on 5th July 2024 via Napalm Records. Below is the band's promotional video for Armada.