Band:	Amphitryon
Album:	Sumphokéras
Style:	Melodic death metal, Doom metal
Release date:	2006
A review by:	Jeff

01. Archéia
02. Theocracy
03. Omen
04. Cadence Of The Rowers
05. Armadas Conflict
06. Pantheon
07. Paths Of Dementia
08. Phthonèros Daìmon
09. Samsâra

Amphitryon is a new combo of Doom Death made in France. But this time, we're in front of something new and original and yes, it's really good to see that a new band is able to do something a bit different sometime. Between My Dying Bride, Therion and Spetic Flesh, "Sumphokéras" is a surprising album, not perfect maybe but ambitious and full of good ideas.

The concept of the music of Amphitryon is not so simple. The band chose to write a really special Doom Death mixed with Symphonic music, avant-garde sonorities, tribal sounds and Progressive Metal (ouch that's a lot!). The result is totally uncommon, of course it's Doom/Death with slow tempos and Death Metal vocals but you'll be able to hear some great orchestrations and some good symphonic music embellished by some great vocals and operatic choirs. If you addition it to the mystic and tribal aspect you can understand that the music of Amphytrion can be really interesting but complex too?

On the other hand, it's a bit messy sometime and the album suffers a bit of an average production. Well, actually the production is not so bad but for this kind of music it should be magisterial and it's not and you'll quickly see that it can be problematic, sometime sadly "Sumphokéras" sounds a bit weak. But I can't blame a lot Amphytrion, the band chose to play a music so complex and epic that it was simply impossible to do something perfect. It was a risk, Amphytion took it and "Sumphokéras" is finally not so amazing but still for a first album it's already promising and I clearly believe that the band will be able to create something great soon if they follow this way and just find how to manage such musical diversity.

For a first album "Sumphokéras" is already convincing. Some of you will be disturbed by the complexity of the music of the French combo but trust me, we're in front of a really promising band. I don't know if they will be able to confirm all my hopes but if they manage to put some order in their future compositions, we will talk a lot about this band which will never mainstream but which could become cult. Must be followed?