Formed in 2015, riff masters Sable Hills make a welcome return with their third album Odyssey. It finds this quintet continuing an amazing journey that has taken them from Tokyo clubs to the world’s biggest festivals and all without sacrificing their core sound. Now signed to the ever-reliable Arising Empire label, Sable Hills are primed and ready to conquer the globe, and with Odyssey in their arsenal, their dominion seems a mere formality.
The fact that Sable Hills are a band on a mission becomes patiently obvious by introduction ‘The Eve’. It’s brisk and brief and sets things up nicely for opener proper ‘Odyssey’ which kicks the album off in speaker-blowing style. It’s musical explosion that finds the guitars illuminating the sky like phosphorous flares, the drums startle like Chinese firecrackers, while Takuya’s vocals are spat with real distaste. It all adds up to an auditory assault, and one that’s not in the business of taking prisoners. Operating as a unified force only increases the band’s power; everything is honed into a tight ball of fury and delivered like a red hot laser beam.
There’s a perpetual motion to Sable Hill which suggests they aren’t going to rest on past glories and the force-of-nature songs such as ‘A New Chapter’ tend to sweep the listener along in their wake. These are songs bursting at the seems with good ideas, yet a wide, expansive production gives every instrument room to breathe and that ensures things never sound cluttered. Subsequently, there’s an airy, ethereal nature to ‘Carry The Torch’ and that makes a nice foil to the overarching feeling of heaviness. The two combine to create a push/pull effect, and in turn makes for a collaborate affair, which engages the listener from start to finish.
Unlike many of their peers in the metalcore community Sable Hills don’t confine themselves in a self-made prison. While there’s much here that tethers them to that scene (such as breakdowns, blast beats and dropped guitar tunings), the band aren’t afraid to throw something new into the mix such as soaring guitar solos and clean vocals which makes Odyssey an album that constantly throws up new surprises, and no more so than on the final cut. Closing with a homage to their native Tokyo (unsurprisingly titled ‘Tokyo’), it is a cataclysmic conclusion and one that won’t be forgotten in a hurry.
Handling the “difficult third album” with apparent ease, it is time for you to join Sable Hill’s Odyssey.
- Odyssey is released via Arising Empire on 19th July 2024.
- Official Website | Facebook | X (Twitter) | YouTube Channel
Track List:
1. The Eve
2. Odyssey
3. Misfortune
4. Battle Cry
5. A New Chapter
6. Anthem
7. Carry The Torch
8. No Turning Back
9. Bad King
10. Forever
11. Tokyo
