ASTRAL DOMINE / Arcanum Gloriae (2014)

Founded in 2011 by music composer an lyricist Luca Gagnoni with the intent of creating epic, powerful music with a peaceful message, Astral Domine have signed a deal with Bakerteam Records for the release of their debut album ‘Arcanum Gloriae’. Produced by the band itself, with mixing and mastering duties held by Andrea De Paoli (Labyrinth, Vision Divine) at Multimedia Sound Studio, ‘Arcanum Gloriae’ features special guest appearances by renowned singers Fabio Lione (Rhapsody Of Fire, Vision Divine, Hollow Haze) in the song ‘Where Heroes Die’ and Giuseppe “Ciape” Cialone (Rosae Crucis) on the song ‘Falsi Dei’. Inspired by fantasy themes and landscapes, Astral Domine’s music is perfectly depicted by the ‘evocative album artwork, which recalls the epic scenery of the Game Of Thrones series.


After the epic-intro, comes the first big moment of the album; "Holy Knights" is an impressive epic and powerful metal song that combines the melody with the heaviness in such a unique way. The acoustic mellower parts give to the song the extra flavor and make this song an ecstatic moment. With "Moonlight" the band delivers a really heart-full tune filled with some amazing guitar lines. Brilliant stuff! "Where Heroes Die" is yet another highlight from this debut release. The appearance of Fabio Leone in this one takes the whole track into a higher dimension! "I'm The King" recalls some Malmsteen's earlier works while in "My Lord" the theatrical-movie elements along with melancholic vibe are making this tune a true highlight!

All in all, this is an extremely interesting release all the way. This is not the ordinary epic power metal band; ASTRAL DOMINE delivers a solid record with a 'clever' way that finally achieve to fascinate the listener from start to finish! 
Heavy Paradise's Rating : 8/10

• Track List :

1. Arcanum Gloriae
2. Holy Knights
3. King Of North
4. Moonlight
5. Tale Of The Elves And Pain
6. Where Heroes Die
7. I Am The King
8. My Lord
9. Welcome To My Reign
10. Falsi Dei