Here’s a sentence I rarely get to write out these days: it’s been a little over a year since the last release of today’s band and yet, they have a new one coming out in just three short days! I’ve had the pleasure of diving into Parity’s first full length album Zero Sum Game a bit ahead of time and I’m happy to share my thoughts on it with you below so buckle up and let’s dive in!
First off, I am very happy to report that my main gripe, the short duration, with the previous two releases is no more: we’re close to the forty-one minute mark of carefully crafted modern metal! While the previous EPs were not anticlimactic per se, Zero Sum Game just feels like the perfect ratio of build-up to a crescendo, before leading to a beautiful ending.
On an instrumental level, these ten songs feel even tighter and written with more, for lack of a better word, focus on being coherent while at the same time being much more technical. A good example is the instrumental track Multiverse Paradigm which could be straight off a Night Verses record, because it just takes you on a journey into another dimension while being straight-forward enough to grip you on your first listen.
This instrumental improvement is also complemented by, what I believe is, a different approach to the writing of the vocal melodies and lyrics. Because the cohesiveness of those elements results in a lot more memorable hooks and choruses that grab your attention much quicker than before. Despite saying something very similar on my previous review, the entirety feels so much more mature and fleshed-out, truly reaching a substantially higher level.
I can’t end this review without talking about the vocals, of course. While I’ve been very much on-board from the get-go in 2020, the vocal performance on this new release is definitely something else, in the best sense of the expression. The clean vocals feel a lot fuller and more confident than previously and the screams have not lost a single millimeter of their edge. Another, as far as I can recall, new element in the vocals is the very occasional use of vocal effects to produce a slightly robotic sound, which always fit the songs quite well.
All in all, I am very happy to say that the wait for a real full length album was well worth it! Zero Sum Game is a powerful entry into the Luxembourgish metal scene and I truly hope that Parity will be able to ride the wave of success that this album will, undoubtedly, bring with it. If I managed to make you curious, be sure to check out the video below and head to the band’s Facebook page. And last but not least, move your sweet cheeks to Rockhal this Saturday for their release show!