ALBUM REVIEW: Absolva - "Defiance"

By: Richard Maw

Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 28/07/2017

Label: Rocksector Records

For anyone interested in melody and hooks, they will find them here. The guitar pyrotechnics are astonishing- really good solos- and the band as a whole sound very cohesive, live and tight. The UK's best kept secret in metal? Not for much longer. Absolva will soon reign!! 

“Defiance “CD//DD track listing:

CD 1

1. Life on the Edge

2. Defiance

3. Rise Again

4. Fistful of Hate

5. Never Be the Same

6. Alarms

7. Connections

8. Midnight Screams

9. Life and Death

10. Eclipse

11. Who Dares Wins

12. Reflection

CD 2 (Bonus)

1. Harsh Reality

2. Hundred Years (Live)

3. Live for the Fight (Live)

4. Drum Solo (Live)

5. Code Red (Live)

6. Never A Good Day to Die (Acoustic)

7. It Is What It Is (Acoustic)

8. Never Back Down (Acoustic)

The Review:

Absolva return with studio album number four. This Manchester metal band are amongst the hardest working in the business- three of them are Blaze Bayley's band and have played on his latest albums, one plays with Iced Earthas well! Holding down two regular bands is enough of a feat on its own, but to produce this level of quality across the board... well, that is another proposition entirely.

For those who are unfamiliar, Absolva are a heavy metal band. Not thrash, not trad, not blackened sludge with ambient passages: heavy metal. I suppose that their sound is mid way between, say, Judas Priest, Accept, Alter Bridge and Metallica. “Defiance”follows up the rather excellent never “A Good Day To Die” and continues down that road- while being a little heavier and a little more rocking to my ears.

Opener “Life On The Edge” sets the tone- blazing guitars, superb clean vocals and a meaty production. The title track is just as good- catchy and anthemic with a strong refrain. Truthfully, Absolva would go down really well as a support for any of the aforementioned bands- and that is exactly the type of tour they need to push them over the edge from professional band into the rock start bracket. That these boys are not in the mainstream press and consciousness as much as they should be is ridiculous.

As the album's twelve tracks progress, the quality control is there- each track is different and brings hooks, melody and weight. The urgency of “Rise Again” is balanced by the strong hooks. The mid paced likes of “Fistful of Hate” sit alongside faster tracks such as “Never Be The Same” and melodic tracks such as “Alarms”, while the revved up charge of “Who Dares Wins” delivers a shot of adrenaline as a counterpoint to the more restrained fare.

For your money, you also get a bonus CD (or MP3s, I suppose) of acoustic versions from earlier albums and a selection of live versions. As a nice bonus, it's a winner- it encourages the listener to delve into the back catalogue and gives value for money.

For anyone interested in melody and hooks, they will find them here. The guitar pyrotechnics are astonishing- really good solos- and the band as a whole sound very cohesive, live and tight. The UK's best kept secret in metal? Not for much longer. Absolva will soon reign, after all Maiden and Saxon won't be around forever.

“Defiance” is available here

Band info: official || facebook