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Album Review – Shadow of the Talisman / As Above, So Below (2025)

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Behold this concept album of first-class Alternative Metal introducing us to The Dark One, who chooses to recruit and resurrect a broken man to transform him into a killing machine soon known as The Outlaw.

An Alternative Metal band from Flint, Michigan that takes concept rock to the next level while striving to unite all facets of the metal scene through complex musical journeys and heart-wrenching lyrics, and a community where every metalhead can find something perfect for them, Shadow of the Talisman are ready to kill armed with their debut opus, entitled As Above, So Below. Recorded at Raydon Studio with the help of Mark Stewart, serving as co-producer and mix engineer, the debut by vocalist Mike Smith, guitarists Zack Harrison and Owen Summerland, bassist Elijah Kinney, and drummer Kyle Williams is a concept album introducing us to The Dark One, who chooses to recruit and resurrect a broken man to transform him into a killing machine soon known as The Outlaw. This tragic devil’s plaything loses his reality like a dollar bill in a hurricane, and goes straight to a fiery Hell where a deal is made and the remains of his soul, shattered. When The Outlaw resurfaces on Earth as a gunslinging demon, he wreaks havoc in Westerntown, a metaphor for the civilized society this miscreant trashes and shreds. And even though he eventually has a change of heart, there is no future for him but to return to the Hell that forged him, where he is destined to annihilate The Dark One and become the new ruler of the underworld.

Just hit play and the band already comes ripping with six minutes of heaviness in the opener Arise, with its cinematic intro inviting us all to their metal feast spearheaded by the enraged roars by Mike; and Mike’s vocals remind me of the great John Bush in What Is Real?, while Zack and Owen deliver tons of heaviness and melody through their axes. Kyle and Elijah then bring the groove in Fiery Descent while Mike continues to scream the story of The Dark One and The Outlaw for our total delight, whereas Elijah’s metallic bass sets the tone in Dead with the Devil, offering a thrilling fusion of Alternative and Groove Metal, with Kyle hammering his drums until the song’s very last second.

The second half of the album begins with a song dedicated to The Outlaw, again showcasing the band’s dexterity and passion for melody and groove while remaining as heavy as possible. Then a Southern Rock-inspired intro evolves into Cursed, a ballad that sounds as if it was taken from an Avenged Sevenfold album. It could have been slightly shorter, though. Lastly, we have the two-part song that gives the name to the album, starting with As Above, perfect for some nice headbanging, for nonstop horns raising and for screaming it along with Mike, with its last part being a display of melodious, passionate riffs and solos by Zack and Owen, flowing into So Below, a beyond heavy and fulminating tune crafted by the band where their modern-day Groove Metal vein pulses harder than ever, putting a climatic, epic conclusion to the album and therefore to its background story.

A metallic tornado of genres and mediums swirled into a sensational horror story told through funky, break-oriented Alternative Metal featuring powerful vocals and intricate, raucous instrumentals, As Above, So Below will undoubtedly carve the name of Shadow of the Talisman in the current American metal scene, and you can put your dirty hands on such an electrifying album by clicking HERE or HERE. Don’t forget to also give the band a shout on Facebook and on Instagram, and to stream their incendiary music on YouTube, Spotify or any other streaming platform. Will we hear from The Dark One and The Outlaw again in the future, maybe in a new concept album by Shadow of the Talisman? As the answer to that is a mystery for now, let’s keep banging our heads to the fury blasted in As Above, So Below, one hell of an album (pun intended) from the modern American Alternative Metal scene.

Best moments of the album: Arise, Dead with the Devil and So Below.

Worst moments of the album: Cursed.

Released in 2025 Eclipse Records

Track listing
1. Arise 6:01
2. What Is Real? 5:43
3. Fiery Descent 3:09
4. Dead with the Devil 3:50
5. The Outlaw 5:16
6. Cursed 6:09
7. As Above 8:01
8. So Below 9:29

Band members
Mike Smith – vocals
Zack Harrison – guitar
Owen Summerland – guitar
Elijah Kinney – bass
Kyle Williams – drums

Album Review – Misanthrope Monarch / Misanthrope Monarch MCD (2014)

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A short but very effective sample of all the brutality this Death Metal band from Germany can offer us.

Rating5

mm_cover_1.inddThe country of Germany has been indeed a nonstop Death Metal machine in 2014, as they keep breeding more and more excellent new bands for all metalheads who love blast beats, deep guttural vocals and frantic guitars. A very good example recently born in that magnificent Teutonic music fountain is German Death Metal band Misanthrope Monarch and their short but rabid self-titled mini CD, Misanthrope Monarch MCD.

Founded in 2014, this band from Oberhausen, in the Ruhr Area, Germany, started as a one-man project by lead guitarist Kristian Göbels, but quickly evolved to a full regular band after a while, especially with the live aspect in mind. The band is still looking for a full-time drummer, but that didn’t stop them from recording the mini CD with none other than the awesome Mike Smith, best known for his kick-ass years behind the drum set with American Brutal/Technical Death Metal band Suffocation. With that said, you can already have an idea of the heaviness and brutality you’ll find in the music by Misanthrope Monarch.

MMbandThe smooth acoustic intro Ash kind of deceives the listener, being something like the famous “calm before the storm”, because when the massacre begins with Crushing the Unbeliever, those guys truly deliver some high-end technical Death Metal: while Mike Smith is simply killing anything that moves on drums, Markus Gornik sounds really awesome with his guttural vocals, showcasing all the aggressiveness (and even some tones) of the old Max Cavalera. In Father Sin and the Hollow Spirit, Kristian Göbels and Chris Salmen do an excellent job on the guitars, including a cool guitar solo inspired by our good old Thrash Metal. Not only that, all rhythmic breaks and variations making the song a lot more enjoyable, with drums once again sounding like a furious jackhammer. The last track, Disintegrate, is just an outro “informing” you that the tornado is over and that you can try to recover from it and rest for now, until the band gets back with a full-length album (which means more destruction), hopefully sooner than later. And finally, another highlight is the album art, emanating violence and darkness just as their music does. Will it be “expanded” for the full-length album?

While we wait for this and some other questions which can only be answered when they release a full-length album, you can take a listen at their mini CD on their SoundCloud page, and also support the band by purchasing their music on iTunes or Amazon. Misanthrope Monarch MCD might be just a sample of what they’re capable of doing, but so effective you’ll surely get eager for more.

Best moments of the album: Father Sin and the Hollow Spirit.

Worst moments of the album: None until they release a full-length album.

Released in 2014 Independent

Track listing
1. Ash 1:17
2. Crushing the Unbeliever 3:10
3. Father Sin and the Hollow Spirit 2:46
4. Disintegrate 1:15

Band members
Markus Gornik – vocals
Kristian Göbels – lead guitar
Chris Salmen – rhythm guitar
Pat Fleischmann – bass

Guest musician
Mike Smith – drums