Seasons Of The Wolf – Orna Verum
Iron Shield Records
Released April 26 – 2024
Seasons Of The Wolf is a Traditional, Progressive, Heavy Metal band from Tampa Bay, Florida, U.S.A.
They were formed in 1988.
The remaining founding members are Barry Waddell aka “Skully” on guitars (Producer, arranger, lyrics, backing vocals) and Dennis Ristow aka “Dr. Samurai” on keyboards and backing vocals. (Studio Engineer, lyrics)
The band also consists of Robert Vaughn Baxter on vocals, Sam Conable on bass and Ken Trapp on drums.
Orna Verum is their eighth studio album and it is a very unique sounding album. It feels almost like a demo sound on the album and “Skully” told me that they were looking for an authentic and raw sound like in the old days of heavy metal. And they sure do sound like something from the late 70s or early 80s with their heavy and keyboard-driven sound.
“Reignite The Sun” – is a fast and haunting song with a great chorus. I also love the guitar solo in this song. Maybe some will dislike the singing but after a few listens it fits with the song.
“Stella Magnetica” – was the first song to be released before the album and it has gotten a lot of radio play on CGCM Rock Radio since it came out. This is a really great song and here the singing sounds much better. Another great solo by “Skully” on this song. It is a bit progressive and dark.
“Hopes And Fears” – is another song that has been played a lot on the independent radio stations. Straight forward with a great chorus and again a very 70s feel to it.
“Rain“- is a ballad but a heavy one. The singing is on and off on this one but still is one of my favorite songs on the album. Halfway through it almost sounds like a Judas Priest ballad from the 70s. Great solo again by “Skully”.
“Supernatural” – this is a cool rocker with a heavy riff. Again a very unique and old-school sound.
“Rise Up” – this is the most straight-on rocker on the album with a cool organ in the background. I must give the drumming a mention too. Throughout the album, we get many cool fills in the songs from the drummer Ken Trapp.
“Black Swamp Gypsy” – this is a very original-sounding song with a cool beat. Like a voodoo song and it is really heavy. Once again very 70’s style with a ripping solo.
“Mortuary Man” – starts with a scary keyboard intro and then it goes into a really heavy song. Here we can hear the inspiration from Black Sabbath and Uriah Heep. This song even has a great keyboard segment in the middle. Heaviest song on the album.
“Exordium” – a cool instrumental piece, like some of the ones that Black Sabbath had on their albums.
“Return Of The King” – This song has a bluesy feeling in the beginning and then it goes into a great chorus with cool riffs and organ. This has become one of my favourites on the album.
“Coat Of Arms” – the second ballad and this is with acoustic guitar. It has a nice feeling and once again it goes into a little heavier song in the middle. I hear a lot of Uriah Heep in this one.
“Once More Unto The Breach” – The last song is a rocker that sounds like early RIOT. Great song to end a great album.
If you like heavy rock from the 70s, this is a must for you. Now that I know that they wanted it to sound like this, the album has grown even bigger on me.
For fans of Uriah Heep, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Riot, Blue Oyster Cult, Hawkwind and more.
Rating 7/10
Back in 2016, Rich “The Meister” Dillon reviewed SEASONS OF THE WOLF – Last Act Of Defiance album when he was with the Decibel Geek website. That article is also now available to read here on CGCM Rock Radio website: SEASONS OF THE WOLF – Last Act Of Defiance (Album Review).
