Description

Holy Shire is a young symphonic metal act out of the fertile musical soil of Milan, Italy. Midgard from 2014 is their debut full-length. The album opens up with “Bewitched (My Words Are Power)” and its catchy Power Metal riffs and intriguing vocals, a little watered-down by some weird and kind of superfluous flute cacophony here and there that might have been intended for a Folkish feeling but ended up sounding almost-irrelevant. The following track “Winter Is Coming” is in a completely different mood, still featuring the soaring female/male vocal duet and a succession of tight solid and riffs. It’s a convincing track despites the (now) clichéd title. “Overlord Of Fire” is an instant Power Metal classic and I think it’s one of the best songs on this album due to its vigorousness and the great male vocals, yet again the flute (and even the female vocals) slightly ruined it for me. Holy Shire features more prominent symphonic elements and lives up to being the band’s eponymous track. The female voices are surprisingly much better on this one. The Revenge Of The Shadow and Holy War are on of the heavier side, with a slightly progressive vibe. In Beyond and the bonus track Greensleeves the flute ceases to sound irrelevant and seems to be fitting at last. Overall judgement is that the first step is always shaky and rather than exploding with a wild, uncontrollable wind ala Rhapsody or recent Ancient Bards affairs, Holy Shire instead opt for a mid-paced, riff-driven focus more akin to a melodic Iced Earth mixed with the atmosphere of keyboard-laced arena rock and modern rhythmic chugging that drips with genuineness but doesn’t exactly slay at first glance. At the end of the day Midgard isn’t exactly an explosive debut, but it’s also not a complete loss. If you’re already into Italian Symphonic Power Metal, this is an album to add to your collection. It’s not an instant favourite, nor does it bring anything new to the subgenre, but that’s what Power Metal is all about. The eternally-successful combination of the magical elements that you either adore or despise.

Track list:
1. Bewitched (My Words Are Power)
2. Winter Is Coming
3. Gift Of Death
4. Overlord Of Fire
5. Holy Shire
6. The Revenge Of The Shadow
7. Beyond
8. Holy War
9. Midgard
10. Greensleeves