Reviewed by James Howard-Smith

For those who look at Misty Edwards' gothic romance rock and see a little of Taylor Swift, or lamented Skillet's last album sounding rather too much like Nickelback, here's a proper metal band, with Phil Mitchell on the drums, Bruce Springsteen's greasier brother on guitar, and a human hawk behind the mic. On this fifth full length studio release Stairway radiate with a lost metallic authenticity everywhere from their fearlessly unfashionable sound to their album cover absence, where their place is taken by a painting of those four horsemen described in Revelation chapter six. (The painting was originally done by Rodney Matthews for Rick Wakeman, and there's a video on Matthews' website in which he and Rick discuss the book of Revelation's contemporary relevance.) Beginning to end, 'Interregnum' is orthodox heavy metal, situated before Korn adjusted expectations, before grunge took off, and before Metallica went mainstream. There's quite a catalogue of genre techniques here. Intros come at varying volumes, speeds, and pitches - as antique as "Born To Die"'s light melodic opening, an approach to metal that goes back even as far as the psychedelic "Planet Caravan" on Black Sabbath's second album; as motley as the screeching start of "What Lies Within" evolving briefly into an ethereal riff remarkably close to the electrifying opening of Iron Maiden's top-ten hit "The Prophecy" before settling into fundamental power chords. Further inside the songs, there's zipping fret-work, such as on "Enter The Light", that's akin to middle period thrash, while the Maiden influence turns up again in the galloping rhythms. "New Life" even pulls out the once controversial synthesiser sounds of the '70s and '80s. Christ is a central figure on the album, and lyrics are often concerned with resurrection and renewing through divine rescue, but this is often done with heavy assistance from death imagery, which sits more comfortably with the musical style than something too fancy or parading would. Unfortunately, and this is to be expected, the relentless retroactivity, though heartfelt, takes as much as it gives, meaning in the end that 'Interregnum' does nothing more than meet genre expectations.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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