Melodic metal band, Pandora’s Key introduce their debut album, ‘Yet I Remain’, out now, as a DIY release.
Formed in Dutch city, Breda, in 2016, their debut EP, ‘Prometheus Promise’ landed in 2017.
Incorporating blends of mythical and modern lyrical content, their material is hooky and upbeat, yet complex and shadowed.
‘YIR’ is the outcome of COVID restrictions, enabling greater evolution and more powerful sounds. The launch show took place in Breda, back in January.
PK are a 6 piece band.
1779 – A gothic organ plays, amidst a storm and funeral bells clanging, in the night. A neighing, galloping horse features, while a Celtic folk melody overtakes, with sinister underlying tones. A creaking door and choirs add depth and layers to the sound. Ending on a sudden, intriguing melodic lift.
De Bockereyder – Heavy metallic intro. Right into the fray). Fast, catchy rhythms and winning melodies. Spoken word section, before moving into melodic vocals. Good male:female ratio, fitting the choral sections well. Growing growlier, at the bridge, while retaining the melody. Good, hooky beats. Darkly evocative, through the lyrics. Very decent riffage. Closing on a combined vocal, with audible fret slide.
Ariadne – Fresh, breathy drum hits open. Straight into a meaty refrain. More gothic organ sounds, operatic vocals and growls. Strong vocals, though they could just be a bit clearer. Pitter-patter raindrop-like piano adds poignancy to the suddenly stronger vocals, at the bridge. Riffs overtake, just building on that emotion, before the vocals return, with added growls, alongside the melodic leads. Great momentum; sustained till the end.
Freedom’s Call – Banging intro thrust! Heavily percussive, with great intensity. Operatic vocals lend beauty; offset by the deeper growls. Strong vocal pairing. Very effective drumming, providing a powerful percussive backdrop. The song soars, but again, there are times when the vocals become obscured, though they do remain strong.
Falls The Shadow – Cymbal hits intro, with a huge crash of energy! Immediately rapid rhythms briefly emerge, but are then overtaken, by a dipping mood, within the tones. It doesn’t stay down for long, though). Everything soars, just before the bridge; racing on, from there. Bleakness hits, momentarily, then that real intensity hits, once more, till the end. Very dramatic stuff.
The Keening – Slow darkness opens, via the piano melody, with haunting background whispers. Merging into melodies; a beautiful sound emerges. Sudden crashing action implodes the atmosphere. Becoming a hugely percussive storm. The vocals lead, towards the bridge, though the accompaniments sound a bit fuzzy, at times. A very theatrical section hits, just after the bridge; injecting more meat. Those background screams are suitably haunting. Blurring, into a sophisticated blend of vocal melody, sombre piano and crushingly heavy accompaniments. The final vocal line hits just the right heightened tone).
Kindling Ire – Instant metal might)! Impacting drums and big growly vocals set the tone, straight away. A real stomping feel to this. Alternating speed, style and tempo, featuring sparser vocal lines and more instrumentals, with the monster growls at the heart. Heavy drum hits begin and end it.
The Flying Dutchman – Powerful, clear vocal intro! Beautiful folky strings bring out the melody. Here, the growls are present, within the sound, but it’s the leads which step forward, now. This arrangement really gives them a chance to shine and they do. The string section continues, adding so much more vibrancy, light and life. This is the best production sound, yet. Good clear fade-out.
Icarus – Sudden diversion, into space exploration voice-overs, luckily giving way, to high toned melodies. Now, the vocals are even stronger. It’s a strong structure, altogether. Great rushing pace, providing the catch and drive. Loving that riff spin, in the latter half). That’s a big key to the frantic execution. Drums adding more power, as with the cymbals, right till the end.
Per Ardua – Crashing drum opening, leading into a deep dive, into electronica; woodwind accompaniments lurking, in the background, briefly, before the lead vocals overtake. A real heaviness to the drums. Vocals strengthening, with the accompaniments joining, in thunderous statement. That beat’s the perfect physicality; contrasting with the more quiescent sections. Once again, a driving force emerges; offset by the punctuating percussion. Vocals palpably conveying the solar plexus source of their energy. Closing on a beautifully melodic fusion of leads and chorals.
Overall – A largely excellent and driven album, with many powerful features, ‘Yet I Remain’ is an intriguing fusion of sounds; including symphonic, orchestral, metallic and folky ethereal. It bravely ventures into alternate territories, with adventurous spirit. Only a couple of things just let it down, slightly: the audio production just sounds a bit muffled and fuzzy, in places; obscuring the vocal potential and the sudden stylistic deviations may detract from its accessibility, here and there. It’s generally well conveyed, though and otherwise, ‘YIR’ is an enjoyable and versatile listen).
8/10 ********
For fans of Aonia, Nightwish, Within Temptation, Delain, Epica, Evanescence, Lacuna Coil, Midnattsol.
https://www.facebook.com/pandoraskeymetal/
https://www.instagram.com/pandoraskey/
https://www.deezer.com/nl/artist/12276744
https://music.apple.com/us/artist/pandoraskey/1224999346
https://www.youtube.com/@pandoraskey6937
https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Pandora%27s_Key/3540425559
https://open.spotify.com/artist/21XJIUBxELeOXdlOJsUp3I
Press Contact: Mike de Coene, at Hard Life Promotion.
www.facebook.com/hardlifepromotion
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