REVIEW: Caliban “Ghost Empire”
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Caliban is melodic German metalcore at it’s finest. With seven studio albums and two split albums under their already stellar 17 year career, Caliban has surely made one hell of a name for themselves in the industry. Showing no signs of slowing down, Caliban is about to take you on a ride through a vast kingdom. A kingdom filled with spectral beings and spiritual apparitions. This place is called Ghost Empire.
Ghost Empire is a pinnacle for the band showcasing the outstanding vocals and amazing instrumentals that the band has been known for during their career. The screams are piercing and the cleans are smooth, skillfully performed by both vocalists in a tandem that isn’t forced, but combined with precision. It’s truly amazing when a band can master the art of mixing cleans and screams in a song in a day when bands half-ass their music in an effort to “churn out hits” when they are just polluting the industry. The instrumentals are a gift from the music gods, as it’s not just blast beats and shredding the whole time. There is a sense of melodic peacefulness mixed in with driving power that showcases a side of metalcore that bands today should strive to meet and exceed with every release. I honestly feel like when taken as a whole, the whole album is a testament to what years of experience can bring to the table. But I have to say the biggest standout of the whole record is “Cries and Whispers.” With a soothing guitar intro that leads into one hell of a metalcore ballad filled with pure emotion, this track is easily the best track on the album and is sure to be a fan-favorite at concerts.
Hitting the ear with a daft mix of forceful impact and gentle caressing to give you a choir of symphonic resonance that sends you on a trip to musical heaven, “Ghost Empire” is anything but a ghost. It’s a living, breathing example of how even 17 years into a career, a band can put out an album that truly lives up to the definition of perfection.
Score: 10/10
