PREMACY – Voices Above

Premacy put out a fairly decent four-song demo called Fragile Lives not long ago; the Metal Express Radio review of that can be found here. As far as Modern Rock releases go, it was done pretty well, but at the same time trod over familiar territory.

Now, Premacy has released a second four-song EP: Voices Above. The same line-up (Thomas Dahl, vocals; Stian Dahl, guitar; Torkil Riiser, drums; and Mats Magnem, bass) that played on that disc appears here. Thomas Dahl left the group after Fragile Lives came out due to health reasons, but has since returned.

If you enjoyed the first Premacy release, you’ll probably like this one too, since the band hasn’t altered their sound too much. It’s still melodic, emotional Modern Rock in the same musical vein that was heard on Fragile Lives, with fairly heavy riffs, emotive vocals, and a good sense of melody. The riffs seem a bit heavier this time around (always a good thing), and Stian Dahl fits in some pretty nice solos when the opportunities arise.

Voices Above may only be four songs long, but it seems to drag a little bit in places, probably because all of the songs are over five minutes in duration. The tracks don’t wear out their welcome, but they could have used some trimming here and there; the spoken-word interlude about the evils of television in the title track comes across as superfluous, not to mention heavy-handed. It could have been dropped without anyone missing it.

Although they’re not really fast-paced (more mid-tempo), the songs on Voices Above have a decent heavy atmosphere to them, and the vocals of Thomas Dahl are strong throughout. He’s a pretty good singer, and his bandmates are solid enough players.

The production on Voices Above is pretty good for an independent release; everything is clear and easy to understand, and the sound quality is strong across the board. It could probably stand to be a bit “fuller,” but for a self-produced demo, Voices Above has a respectable sound to it.

A full-length studio album from Premacy is due out sometime in 2007. Voices Above will probably serve as a good “teaser” for that release. If you like Modern Rock with a bit of heaviness, check it out!