• Youthful Energy Meets Old-School Trademarks - A Review of Owlbear's Chaos to the Realm

    Owlbear - Chaos to the Realm (2023)

    Owlbear is a brand-new American quartet that combines heroic heavy metal of classic European inspiration with energetic power metal of American origin. The lyrical topics revolve around fantasy topics such as the universe of Dungeons and Dragons. The catchy band name, memorable cover artwork and inspired song titles blend in wonderfully. Owlbear's debut full length effort Chaos to the Realm comes around with ten songs and a perfect total running time of forty-six minutes.

    The four musicians involved in this band have excellent chemistry and here's hope that this is only the start of a promising career. Estee Slaughter's drum play is dynamic, playful and versatile as it provides the solid backbone for the band's energetic heavy and power metal soundscapes. Leona Hayward has been involved in numerous bands and projects for more than a decade and this experience shows in a confident, dominating and vibrant bass guitar play throughout the entire album. Jeff Taft provides particularly diversified guitar play, coming along with tight riffs, melodic sequences and heartfelt solos. Katy Scary has been involved in the new wave of heavy metal for more than a decade and a half by now and has always put much brain, heart and soul into every single release. The vocals on this output make a great heavy metal record excellent as they sound powerful, memorable and enthusiastic from start to finish. This style that finds the perfect balance between technical skills and genuine emotions should also work splendidly in concert.

    There are quite a few highlights that can be found throughout this record. ''Bastard Sons'' has an energetic vibe driven by melodic guitar riffs, tight rhythm section and catchy vocals culminating in a memorable chorus that qualifies this song as potential band anthem for years to come.

    ''Iuz the Old'' however is a much more creative, detailed and epic song clocking in at six and a half minutes. The song's mysterious atmosphere completes its swaggering heavy metal stylistics in a balanced way. This is the type of song that pioneers and veterans such as Manowar have been attempting and failing to write for three decades and counting by now.

    Title track ''Chaos to the Realm'' does its title justice and will blow listeners away right from the start. This anthem has gritty vocals that make listeners want to go to war, a swaggering rhythm that will keep your feet moving, fists raising and head bobbling and excellent guitar tone infusing memorable melodies into the steady energy.

    However, there is still some room for improvement in Owlbear's young career. The songwriting could become even more diversified as it should value experiments over traditions. The band should also try to sign a stable deal with a label to get an even better production for its next output, some clever marketing putting this wonderful band on the map and a tour with bands of similar age, ambition and genre.

    At the end of the day, Owlbear's Chaos to the Realm is worth your attention if you appreciate high-quality releases of the new wave of heavy metal. Anyone who appreciates a balanced mixture of traditional heavy metal and American power metal should check this record out on a streaming platform and encourage the band directly by purchasing its merchandise. The combination of youthful energy and old-school trademarks makes for a timeless final result that has the potential to stand the test of time. It's now up to Owlbear to spread its chaos beyond its realm.

    Final Rating: 80%

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