Canada is hardly a hotbed for melodic death metal, but recently, with the likes of Muspellheim and now the debut from Montreal’s WarCall (formerly known as Plan B), things might be changing.

Though only active for 2 years, this four-piece delivers a pretty solid if unspectacular and often hot/cold debut in Demonarchy. Nothing groundbreaking or earth shattering, but certainly a release that melodic death metal fans should check out as its done with an intensity and enthusiasm that warrants at least some attention.

With a very slight war metal tinge, Demonarchy opens with an orchestral flourish by way of the title track before “WarCall- The Landing”, a track with some really nice melodies in the chorus charges confidently into view. Then “Walk the Plank” delivers a very enjoyable mid paced romp, but “Blood for the Sun” can’t decide if it a galloping melodeath track or a more death ‘n’ roll number with some strange time signatures and a scattershot structures that are all over the place. It’s a minor misstep as “Rampage” cranks out some prototypical bouncy melodic death metal before “Man Bites Dog” jumps the ship again with a more groove and rock structures, including the drastically different vocals all of a sudden.

The hot/cold nature of the album continues with the enjoyable “Ribcrack” and the varied “The Sacrifice” delivering some satisfying if rudimentary melodic death metal before penultimate track, “Architecture of Doom” delivers yet more strangely different vocals and pacing that even a decent mid song gallop and solo can’t help. The short “Cold War Breakout” ends the album in yet another head-scratcher that sounds like a cover of a Judas Priest song or something.

It’s a shame the album is so schizophrenic, because at times there appears to be a solid melodic death metal band here, but the strange change ups almost derail a otherwise solid album that nice production values, likeable delivery and some promise that’s almost grounded by bands desire to change a pretty solid take on the genre at random.

[Visit the band's website]

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