Keep of Kalessin
Reptilian (Nuclear Blast)
Reviewed by Raoul Hernandez, Fri., June 18, 2010
Keep of Kalessin
Reptilian (Nuclear Blast)Kalessin, eldest dragon from Ursula K. Le Guin's visionary Earthsea scrolls, spawns a similarly cyclical "devil from the mountains," one reaching lethal maturity on this Norwegian quartet's fifth album, Reptilian. Atmospherics off 2008's Kolossus open first chapter "Dragon Iconography" only to turn "claw and fang" in Nile-lite demolition of its predecessor's overall mishmash. A void of vocal identity persists, but the teeming, scaly riff and Valhalla on "The Awakening" and penultimate purge "The Divine Land" equal Powerslave-like closer "Reptilian Majesty." (Keep of Kalessin joins Nile at Emo's, Nov. 20.)
