Shadows in Atlantis by Thessaloniki, Greece, Chronomancy is not their first rodeo. In fact, the band has been in existence for more than a decade now, with a full-length and EP under their belt. Hard for me to say what the previous album Here & Now was like, or whether Shadows in Atlantis is connected by a lyrical concept, but there is no doubt that Chronomancy are dedicated to the genre of power metal and in the end they are pretty serviceable at it.

Rebirth can provide an impression that Atlantis has moved to Ireland or Scotland, with its strong Celtic influence, and bagpipe melody flowing over highlands. High male clean voice completes the picture, but outright folk influences like that are really not Shadows in Atlantis main feature, and overall the feeling is a heroic themed, well produced power metal which is not too overly symphonic, operatic or folky. Tunes like Dance of the Vampires or >i>Thunderchild are proceeding along the lines of typical double bass gallops and pulsating bass lines. Melodic leads can hint at classical influences (Dance of the Vampires), and there is some orchestration present (Seven Deadly Kins), but sticking along the lines of single rhythmic structures sometimes hurts the album providing little variety. Some sweeping hooks may be more successful than others (Pilgrims in the Foreign Land), and songs like The Voyager or The Hunting Song go into slower stretchier, more somber and doomier realms (especially The Hunting Song), but at almost 55 min you do feel the album’s length, things are not flying by in breathtaking fashion. There is an attempt to infuse variations by story telling in Seven Deadly Kins, coupled with some almost extreme vocals and an attempt at brief blasting. Magnum Opus has female backing voice and is more polyphonic in nature. Title track is more romantic and melodic, while closer Up with the Phoneix is soaring to valiant heights with some evil touch. Overall, I don’t have any specific complaints to point at, yet my excitement barometer never went into an agitated state while listening to Shadows in Atlantis. Perhaps the music needs more of those infectious hooks as in Pilgrims in the Foreign Land, or rumbling epics, with a prominent riff and warhorns, like Legions of Mist, which reminded me of countrymates Battleroar.