Hydra
Kingdom Of Ignorance

Nordic DNA and the right attitude never lie, that's what I thought after listening to this "Kingdom Of Ignorance" by Hydra. Active since 2009 and with a demo and an EP to their credit, the group succeeds in surprising through a compact work of eight tracks rich in style and great instrumental passages.

When it comes to technique, these musicians know their stuff, adept at navigating both in melodic death-metal and in others more inclined towards metalcore and deathcore (keeping up with the times, after all). Guitars and the rhythm section impress; the former busy producing a quantity of riffs capable of satisfying even the most demanding old-school metalhead, and the latter perfectly conducting the pacing of an album with the accelerator constantly pressed down. An unusual interlude is "Mistakes," a sort of psychedelic slow track placed in the middle of the album that allows the listener to catch their breath in view of a (naturally) crescendo finale. As in other cases, in the lyrics we find ourselves dealing once again with two singers, the first very direct and leaning towards classic growl and the second more devoted to screamo and the alternative scene across the ocean. A vocal dualism that stands out, especially given the sonic wall created behind them, capable of giving even more emphasis and aggressiveness to the whole.

The fact of having such open minds and a desire to experiment seems to have helped, bringing a hitherto unknown band to the forefront with one of the best alternative records made in Italy of this 2013. Bold in the finale is the decision to include a track sung in Italian ("Never Ending"), a choice I fully support as, in my opinion, it is one of the best episodes of the entire lot. In short, a great work, rock-solid and suitably angry, what more could you ask for?