Band:	Vansidian
Album:	Reflecting The Shadows
Style:	Melodic death metal
Release date:	May 2023

01. Dive
02. Code Of Shame
03. Reflecting The Shadows
04. Stormweaver
05. Cycle
06. Suppressed With Light
07. The Hunt
08. The Breach
09. Of Dreams Devoured

Epic power melodeath: now there's a genre blend that sounds interesting, doesn't it? On that note, here's a new outrageously fun, traditionally melodic act, with a real heroic attitude that must be heard by all metalheads who just want to let loose and have some headbanging fun.

Here we have a band that have seemingly come out of nowhere this year, whose intention is to deliver some top-quality headbanging melodeath material. The band in question is Vansidian, a Finnish four-part melodeath band formed in 2017 featuring Mattmagic (guitars), Kustaa Tuori (guitars), Jyri Niinikoski (bass), and Juha Tretjakov (vocals). Finland is renowned for its metal bands, especially when it comes to melodeath, a subgenre they've arguably been leading the way in for some time now. This year alone, we've seen legendary groups such as Insomnium and Kalmah releasing stellar albums, as well as newly established acts such as Anima Hereticae and Suotana making a name for themselves with quality releasees. Well, Vansidian are no exception; what we have here in Reflecting The Shadows is a remarkable debut that's up there with the best that their compatriots have produced.

The Finns are no strangers when it comes to fusing melodeath with extreme power metal elements: take fellow countrymen Kalmah and Wintersun for example. However, Vansidian approach things in a slightly different manner. It's quite a simple style really, focusing mainly on heavy melodic riffs and power leads, rather than introducing the folkish elements of Kalmah or synth-based sounds of Wintersun. If you were to go by the cover art alone, you might expect something along the lines of an epic Manowar-style power metal album, in which case you could well be in for a shock; however, this release, I can promise you, is more than epic enough to get you fantasizing about slaying some beastly enemies with your mighty claymore, and it proves that fantasy-themed lyrics needn't be for the flowery power metal audiences only. Some might think the themes here are too silly for their own good, but perhaps they need to lighten up a bit, because Reflecting The Shadows is one epically entertaining release.

So let's "Dive" into the opening track, as is titled. This is a great and memorable opener that displays some of the album's finest and most exhilarating guitar work so early on, with some great galloping melodic riffs, intertwining with fun power metal-style leads. The whole rhythm and tempo is exciting and energetic, and should have you headbanging from the get-go. The growling vocals also add such a powerfully energetic presence; the track even introduces some well-performed cleans at the end. However, this song is only the beginning, and Reflecting The Shadows will continue to follow the same energetic, and melodic path through its fifty-plus minute duration.

The album's endless supply of catchy melodies, memorable songwriting, and relentless flow makes it difficult to pinpoint standout moments, as such, let alone standout tracks, but there are several moments that really make this album great. One highlight for me is "The Breach"; this is a fun and energetic instrumental, full of exceptional leads, outstanding riffs, and a great galloping rhythm section, with a musicianship performance that is nothing short of spectacular. The title track, "Reflecting The Shadows", is another highly impressive display, and at just over eight minutes is the album's longest featured track. The guitar melodies between the riffs and leads here are exceptional, the vocals both clean and harsh fit perfectly well together, and again are excellently performed. If these elements are starting to sound like a common theme throughout the album, then that's, well, because they are.

Overall, this is an album that won't blow your mind through technicality, brutality or originality, but if you're simply in the mood for something catchy, fun, energetic, and heavy but light-hearted, then Reflecting The Shadows could be your answer. Going by this debut, Vansidian are a band with some great potential, and certainly worth looking out for if you're a follower of the modern melodeath scene.