- Photo courtesy of COLOSSUS
“Remember when heavy metal was supposed to be fun? COLOSSUS does.”
That’s the first line from the bio passed around with promos of The Sepulcher of the Mirror-Warlocks, the new EP from appropriately named Raleigh-Chapel Hill metal band COLOSSUS. The self-release represents the outfit’s first new music since 2009.
The band’s claim rings true on The Sepulcher‘s six songs, which pair riffs that churn, tangle and soar with outlandish lyrics about Frank Herbert’s sci-fi epic Dune, a transdimensional love affair and the pulp fantasy series Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. The record succeeds via the same mix of hyper-reverent Iron Maiden worship and fun-loving abandon that was also the boon of COLOSSUS’ first two releases, though The Sepulcher moves with a relentless energy those previous efforts can’t match. COLOSSUS’ music treats heroic struggle with the color-drenched bliss of a great Saturday morning cartoon. Sean Buchanan’s powerful belts will make metal fans of the right ilk feel like eight-year-olds, sitting dangerously close to the TV, pumping their fists as Lion-O raises his sword and screams “ThunderCats, ho!”
The album is available for $6 at KungFuNation and can be streamed in full below. COLOSSUS’ next local show is Aug. 31 at Slim’s in downtown Raleigh.
