BLACK FUTURE

Vektor is without a doubt a band with a whole lot of potential. From a technical point of view, they are very talented and also diversified. The problem is that they don't have a quite unique sound and remind me of many other bands.

The first couple of tracks that kick off this record in a rather weak and closed minded pattern have a traditional thrash and black metal vibe that make me think of Slayer or Venom without reaching the originality of these two brands that defined the metal scene thirty years ago or so.

The more progressive tracks as well as many lyrics are clearly influenced by Voivod while the melodic guitar solos have a touch of Iron Maiden. The first great tracks are the calmer and atmospheric songs like the slow and slightly soft experiment "Destroying The Cosmos" or "Forests Of Legend". When the band reaches this kind of quality in the song writing, one doesn't care about the fact that they stole some ideas from here and there but this song is rather a very positive exception on this record. These two tracks are full of breathtaking changes, great melodies and energizing blackened thrash vocals.

The last couple of tracks like "Dark Nebula" are though the best ones on this output make me think of the best works of Absu. The epic final track "Accelerating Universe" never gets too boring in over thirteen minutes of running time and shows the whole creativity of the band. These four tracks leave me wanting more and prove that the strong side of the band is clearly their progressive approach and they just need some time to innovate their very own style in this genre to become a true new legend. The other five tracks are good but definitely not very outstanding in my humble opinion.

This band is inspired by many great artists that all fit together and give this record a great flow but they still fail to invent something new. If you already know the mentioned bands above than the only good reason to check this first strike of the Arizonan band out would be the fact that you really like the genre and want to listen this kind of music and filling a gap while you wait for a new record coming from Absu or Voivod for example. The potential is though definitely there, the album is a grower and I will soon try out the band's brand new second try after this promising discovery.

Originally published on www.metal-archives.com on February 25th of the year 2012.