Fifth Angel – When Angels Kill

Fifth Angel are a regular occurrence here at GDM. They’ve been through several eras of their history.

Written by: gdmonline

ARTIST: Fifth Angel
ALBUM: When Angels Kill
LABEL: Nuclear Blast
SERIAL: NB 6369-2
YEAR: 2023
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

LINEUP: Steven Carlson – vocals * Steve Conley – guitars * Ed Archer – guitars, keyboards * Jim Dofka – lead guitar * John Macko – bass * Ken Mary – drums

TRACK LISTING: 01 Descent Into Darkness * 02 When Angels Kill * 03 Resist The Tyrant * 04 On Wings Of Steel * 05 We Are Immortal * 06 Empire Of Hate * 07 Run To The Black * 08 Seven Angels * 09 Blinded And Bleeding * 10 Kill The Pain * 11 Five Days To Madness * 12 Ashes To Ashes * 13 The End Of Everything * 14 Light The Skies * 15 Resist The Tyrant (Single Edit)

RATING: 85/100

WEBLINKS: Site Link

Background

Fifth Angel are a regular occurrence here at GDM. They’ve been through several eras of their history, the lineup here taking on one change since 2018’s ‘The Third Secret’ with singer/guitarist Kendall Bechtel being replaced by new boy Steve Carlson (Radio Company and Giants). Fifth Angel continue their connection with Nuclear Blast Records, this latest effort released in June 2023.

As far as the subject matter is concerned, Fifth Angel are slightly south of Manowar and west of Virgin Steele with angels being the prevailing topic of discussion. The lyrical theme might be similar to those two bands but musically they are light years apart. The back end of this band (Archer, Macko, Mary) have been together since the mid 80’s and apart from some minor stylistic changes over the years, the Fifth Angel sound remains theirs.

The Songs

The album kicks off with the one minute intro and scene setter ‘Descent Into Darkness’ then segues directly into the title track ‘When Angels Kill’. It’s a furious entrance, powerful and steel laden with all the elements you expect from the American metal genre. It’s notable that there are spoken word interludes between songs, much like a threaded story a la Queensryche from their ‘Mindcrime’ era. The interludes interchange between both heroes and villains.

‘Resist The Tyrant’ is a song that mirrors our world view going back 100 years or so, reflecting some leaders lust for world power and those brave enough to thwart it. ‘On Wings Of Steel’ and ‘We Are Immortal’ are straight out of the Manowar lyric book, both heavy as horses, modern and surgical like, similar to the best moments of Hittman. Meanwhile, ‘Empire Of Hate’ has all the subtlety of a battering ram, non-stop action.

‘Run To The Black’ is another rock solid affair, with Ken Mary’s immense drum work coming to the fore. An interesting interludes precedes ‘Seven Angels’ which provided a hint to their previous album ‘The Third Secret’. It’s all Angels and Demons stuff that even novelist Dan Brown couldn’t have predicted. ‘Blinded And Bleeding’ takes on a darker persona notwithstanding the hard driving metal prevalent throughout.

‘Kill The Pain’ is the lyrical aftermath of the previous track, with the protagonist (hero) being deceived by an angel he describes as a ‘queen of thieves’. There are interludes at both the start and end of this track. ‘Five Days To Madness’ is a reference to the ending interlude on the last track, which talks of an impending asteroid impacting the Earth in five days, hence the song title. The final days are upon us.

‘Ashes To Ashes’ is a bombastic piece with epic symphonic elements a la Queensryche. At nearly seven minutes, it comes to a resounding crescendo. ‘The End Of Everything’ with it’s big booming sound takes the story through its eventual death spiral. No lament or mournful requiem going on here folks. It’s boom crash wallop stuff. ‘Light The Skies’ is an Iron Maiden styled finale. Particularly Carlson’s Bruce Dickinson doppelganger vocal. Yes, the sky is on fire and it’s all over red rover.

In Summary

‘When Angels Kill’ comes across as an album with a sci-fi meets dystopian future concept. At well over an hour you’ll be doing well to get through this. Overall, this is a very heavy album, Fifth Angel taking it up a notch from their previous releases. I’d be selling it short if I didn’t say that the album was perhaps a bit over ambitious, but they’ve kept to a story line of a supposed fifth angel, but technically there is no such mention of a character in the Bible, though one could construe it to be the fallen angel, as in Lucifer/Satan.

All in all, musically the talents of all involved (particularly Dofka and Mary) is impressive. I’m not sure whey they go from here. Perhaps a return to ‘Time Will Tell’ commercial metal? Surely not! Since this release, guitarist Steve Conley, who was on loan from Flotsam And Jetsam has been replaced full time by Ethan Brosh, a well known shredder in the US metal scene.

Video

When Angels Kill