Review W.E.B. ‘Colosseum’

W.E.B., that is band name that leads to many hits when putting into a search-engine. With a dot between the letters things get a bit more precise and last but not least it still possible to find some information about the Greek metal outfit on the World-Wide-Web.

The band from Athens founded in 2002 and after having release two demos things became more concrete with a debut called ‘Don’t Wait Futility’.

For the ones that haven’t heard of W.E.B. yet, the band consists of founding member Darkface (v/g), Sextus Argieous Maximus (g), Nikitas Mandolas (d) and Hel Pyre (b). The pseudonyms give a first indication of the music one can expect from the quartet. W.E.B. is playing harsh and dark metal, that is enriched by a blackened vibe as well as it has some symphonic elements weaved into their musical concept.

For years after the fourth album ‘Tartarus’ was crawling out of the moistened soil it is ‘Colosseum’ that brings new songs to fans of dark metal. At the same time, ‘Colosseum’ is also the first album the band releases via Metal Blade and offers 39 minutes of heavy and gloomy metal.

Let’s laser in on the first three songs since they represent in a good fashion what band and album stands for. ‘Dark Web’, that is the opener and after a symphonic-laden intro the song shifts gears up dramatically and turns into a fast and blackened one with a choir in the background, supporting the devilish atmosphere.

In general, one can say that the album uses atmosphere is a key element for their sound and the creation of comfortable discomfort. ‘Murder of Crows’ is next and builds on a similar approach as the opener. The dark soundscapes are a bit more in forefront without pushing the brakes too much.

‘Pentalpha’ is track number three on the album and the repetitive incantation “Lucifer bring me light…” in the beginning of the song is a different way to start a track, that spreads its evil vibe by moderate pace and a strong groove. Symphonic elements and soundscapes are present too, which makes ‘Pentalpha’ to a tune, that sums up the musical direction of W.E.B. very well.

The mixture of speed and groove is very balanced on the album which adds a lot to a good flow. Choral passages alternate with massive and fast riff assaults, all combined in a good and entertaining way.

W.E.B. add with ‘Colosseum’ a well-crafted and dense album to their list of achievements and strengthen the Greek dark metal scene that has with Rotting Christ, Septicflesh and some others a lot of bands that prove that the sun also produces shadows and darkness, here manifested by good songs with a lot of headbanging enthusiasm.