Review by Sonny for Ponte del Diavolo - Fire Blades From the Tomb (2024)

Following a trio of EP's, none of which I have heard yet to be honest, Fire Blades from the Tomb marks the debut full-length from Turin gothic metallers, Ponte del Diavolo (which translates as The Devil's Bridge). I must admit I have been blindsided somewhat by this, as I have been continually slipping it to the bottom of my "to-listen" pile, for no reason other than I knew nothing about the band But that was a major miscalculation on my behalf because this is a really interesting listen and reminds me a little of Belgium's Messa in that the band seem to be trying to break out from genre conformity and produce something less predictable, yet still completely listenable. They aren't quite as genre-bending or progressive as Messa, however, with the majority of the tracks here on Fire Blades From the Tomb being assembled from recognisable gothic and black metal components. The gothic elements are the most prevalent, particularly the vocals provided by Erba del Diavolo (real name Elena Camusso) who's vocal style is very reminiscent of The Banshees' Siouxsie Sioux (who is a particular favourite of mine) and the, for want of a better word, "twangy" quality to the guitar sound. It is the black metal elements that make themselves initially known, however, with opener "Demone" launching out of the blocks with a pummellng blastbeat, tremolo riff and a decidedly punky feel. The track then alternates between these punky black metal and lumbering doom-laden slower sections with Erba's soaring vocals tying it all together.

Fire Blades From the Tomb sees the band displaying a nice variation in their songwriting, though, as second track, "Covenant", has a decidedly more post-punk gothic feeling to it with Erba turning in a great performance from demented-sounding shouts to ethereal croons, the track even ends with an always weird-sounding theremin providing a 1950's sci-fi retro feel. Next up "Red as the Sex of She Who Lives in Death" is a brooding doomy gothic piece with Erba providing a powerful and strong vocal that is many miles away from the ethereal and washed-out vocal style often assosciated with female singers in gothic metal, the track's sinister atmosphere reinforced by the clarinet of guest musician Vittorio Sabelli (Dawn of a Dark Age) who actually features on three of the album's seven tracks. If further proof of the band's determination to expand their songwriting is needed, "La Razza" begins with an intro that sounds decidedly like classic space rock before exploding into blastbeat and tremolo riffing territory for a slab of blackened gothica.

I don't intend to do a track-by-track analysis, but merely cover the first four tracks in order to illustrate the variations in the material on offer here. Each of the tracks is sufficiently interesting, well-written and performed to stand on their own, but the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts, with the occult atmosphere building up over the course of the album, whether through brooding ruminations, ritualistic exhortations, haunting lamentations or outright vitriolic outbursts of violence. Fire Blades From the Tomb is well-written, expertly performed and quite ambitious in scope. It's ability to weave together a variety of styles into a coherent whole and maintain a consistent atmosphere is admirable and mark Ponte del Diavolo as a band to keep a close eye on in the future. As if that wasn't enough reson to check this out, in Erba del Diavolo they have a bona fide gothic metal star and a vocalist with a talent and versatility that elevates the music around her to another level. If you love dark, brooding, occult metal then I couldn't recommend this higher.