- Country: Italy
- Style: Symphonic death metal
- Label: Nuclear Blast
- Release date: 23 August 2024
Opera is the first Fleshgod Apocalypse album since frontman Francesco Paoli’s mountain climbing fall in August 2021, the accident that put the Italians on hiatus. The line-up has changed as well: founding bassist and clean vocalist Paolo Rossi is gone, Eugene Ryabchenko takes over behind the kit, and soprano Veronica Bordacchini is now a full member.
Paoli wrote all the lyrics, and the record deals head-on with what happened to him. Lead single “Pendulum” tells the story of the fall itself. Paoli and orchestral arranger Francesco Ferrini produced the album between them, with Jacob Hansen handling the mix and master.
Musically this is Fleshgod at their most focused: ten tracks in 43 minutes, blast beats and orchestra fighting for space, Bordacchini’s soprano cutting through both on “I Can Never Die” and “Bloodclock”. The short piano title track closes things quietly. A strong return from a band that very nearly didn’t get one.
Best tracks:
I Can Never Die
Pendulum
Bloodclock
Matricide 8.21
Author’s rating: 8.5/10
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