September 2025 Feature Release - The Guardians Edition

Another month flies by, which means it's time to nominate a new feature release for The Guardians & this time I'm going to go with one new-ish record I like to reach for when in need of a quick AD&D nostalgia hit - "Wild Rites and Ancient Songs" (2023), from US heavy metallers Blazon Rite. I'll admit that the vocal performance could be described as quite peculiar, although personally, I can easily get behind the "ol' drunken friend at the tavern" vibe. Recommended for fantasy enjoyers!

https://metal.academy/releases/43881

I've done my review, here's its summary:

With my recent return to The Guardians, I've become more determined to discover more heavy/power metal that's either brand-new or I haven't heard before but wish I had 10 years ago when those two genres were my main focus. This month's Guardians feature release is worth continuing my journey. It's time to check out this band Blazon Rite and listen to them sing their Wild Rites and Ancient Songs! It's quite a promising album with tough instrumentation and melodic writing. I also love the song titles, even though they all look like those AI-generated song titles with at least 5 words each. Considering the amount of bands who get put down for any alleged usage of AI, I just hope this band doesn't get wrongfully accused. The songs are often midpaced or fast, though they can slow down for the occasional bard-sung waltz. In the modern age of metal, not many people expect epic melodies within the way of classic heavy/power metal, but bands like Blazon Rite still have their exciting glory. It's great hearing this band bring more life to a style of metal that has withered decades after its highest peak. This offering shall appeal to listeners wanting more epicness and melody in metal without any cheese or orchestra. It's a Blazon Rite of passage!

4.5/5