Review LUTHARO ‘Chasing Euphoria’

Hamilton, Ontario, that’s the homebase of Lutharo. The band started in 2014 and it took a few years before the guys could launch a debut album. ‘Hiraeth’ is the title of this first full-length release which helped the band to get the attention Atomic Fire Records.

With ‘Chasing Euphoria’ the sophomore album waits in the starting blocks and what fans can expect is a wild ride. Equipped with eleven songs, the album mixes different styles of metal which very much has to do with the vocals. Generally rooted in melodic traditional metal it is the vocal range of Krista Shipperbottom. From guttural screams to clean melodic vocals, the singer is capable of using the entire toolkit. What this means becomes apparent after the intro ‘Gates to Enchantment’ hands over to ‘Reaper’s Call’. The start is rather melodic but rather quickly comes the primal scream which also adds to the heaviness of the tune. Shipperbottom though shows her entire portfolio as the wild screams are heart-curdling, followed by melodic moments with clean vocals which gives the song a totally different feel. Having the ability to cover these extremes is a gift and at the same time it seems a bit too much as it feels like the song is built around the vocals.

The album shines much brighter when the band decides to give a bit more space to the clean vocals. ‘Born to Ride’ is such a song. Great vocals and a blistering solo part, together with a decent speed is what shows the talent of the band. Not being totally innovative, Lutharo has a lot of potential when it comes to melodic metal and there is no need of trying to be different with growls.

At the same time, ‘Chasing Euphoria’ blasts with energy. Together with a very sold production, the band got a very powerful sound that allows neck-challenging headbanging, like during the grooving parts of ‘Cheating a King’.

‘Chasing Euphoria’ is entertaining. It comes with a dense and powerful sound which is actually a prerequisite for this kind of music. Lutharo has also a lot of musical potential and at the same time it feels like they wanted a bit too much. Less might be more here. Still good stuff that reaches your ears and let’s follow the bands next steps.