ROAR
11 April 2025
Words by Jack Harlen
The Australian metal scene is notoriously stacked, constantly making me question what it is that makes us the hub for heavy music. But in a sea of incredible bands, it does mean more than a few happen to fall just below my radar. Lucky for me, then, I get to review today’s band Valhalore and their anticipated sophomore album Beyond The Stars.
I’m no stranger to the symphonic metal/folk metal scene, but I will admit a bit of trepidation as we head into this. Valhalore promise a blend of melodic death, power and symphonic metal with a splattering of folk inspiration, and if that sounds like a tall order then you’d be correct. As a bit of a (self-proclaimed) prog snob, I know many bands can sometimes struggle to keep their musical prowess sounding… musical, so as we head into our first track, I eagerly await to see where these guys fall into a genre so hard to get right.
Album opener Life, to my relief, does what it says on the tin and breathes to life an ethereal atmosphere as a wide array of instruments build around this spacey environment. Cellos, wind instruments, synths and bass fill the track before the guitars kick into overdrive, delivering a tone that is crushing yet defined. These elements ultimately give way, flowing into the next song Edge of Forever, where the technical yet melodic style of Valhalore’s sound makes itself known. With a push and-pull feel both vocally and instrumentally, Valhalore demonstrate they are in complete control of this delicate balance of death, power and symphonic metal. To my delight, the ‘death metal’ promised is not some over-exaggeration, having some legitimately heavy sections while maintaining choruses melodic enough that the choir-backed singing fits just as well as the brutal lows did a mere few seconds ago.
As we fade out and into The Storm, the atmosphere shifts from out-of-this-world, bringing us back down to Earth as an acoustic passage accompanies the sound of distant rain. Kicking into a contrastingly more melodic song, Valhalore show off their power/folk metal chops, Lucas Fisher on rhythm servicing a chunky track that feels like an alternative universe where Opeth goes full power metal (not the only time I’m going to make this comparison). Don’t believe me? Check it out for yourself below.
Within The Fire launches us straight back into some death metal as Morgan Cox explodes on the kit matching the equally technical guitar riffs. His playing provides space in the melodic sections, while also delivering some fast, flashy groove during the track’s more intense metal moments. The back half of the song builds to a heavy crescendo that crushes over the choir-backed chorus, and at under five minutes long, Within The Fire is consistently interesting and never feels boring.
By now I’ve realised Valhalore is no doubt impressive. How I haven’t heard about them up to this point is some cruel practical joke by the band, especially because despite not being my favourite genre what they do next is genuinely incredible for a band’s second foray into an album.
The next bundle of tracks dials up the atmosphere to 11, starting with Dusk whose instrumental piece sets the stage. Beginning with only a melody on keys, other string and wind instruments join until we transition into Wayfinder. Here we get to a power metal album staple. Yep. We have found the ballad, however at this point Valhalore have drip-fed so much atmospheric tension that I welcome it with open arms, and so should you.
With folky progressions that would feel right at home in Lord Of The Rings or Baldur’s Gate 3, Wayfinder offers up a truly well-done ballad. It is without doubt a highlight of the album; the clean vocals on display here by Lachlan Neate are devastating and awe-inspiring, while also avoiding the common pitfalls of the average power metal vocalist. Yes, the lyrics are about heroes and love, but it’s delivered with such honesty and emotion that it deserves to be one of the climaxes of the album. Don’t take just my word for it though, clearly, the band are proud of this one being yet another single you can listen to below.
Dawn, a short but sweet instrumental tune, ends our little three-song motif and moving from one atmospheric piece to another we enter the last released single Horizon. This track marks a little over halfway into the album, but the flow of one song into another makes Beyond The Stars feel like one cohesive piece. From the ballad now enters a thunderous prog death metal anthem with blast beats and wind instrument melodies to boot. Neate unleashes his inner Mikael Åkerfeldt on vocals, while Anthony Willis rips a solo in the back half that rounds out this juggernaut of a track. There’s not much to say here other than this song succeeds on every level, combining genres in a way that shouldn’t work but so beautifully does. Not to spoil too much, but I was shocked that this was only my second favourite song on the album. I’m not kidding, check this one out.
The World Between continues Beyond The Stars‘ spacey atmosphere, this time giving bassist Joseph Dipisa-Fiorenza his chance to shine with a bass-led bridge – the standout moment of the track – managing to punch through the vast instrumentation this band displays. This track is straight to the point, offering up the complete prog package but without the 10-12 minute song length. Instead of feeling rushed or drawn out here, the band sticks to its strengths, constantly keeping things moving and sonically interesting.
Introducing us to the final stretch is another instrumental piece entitled Aether, which seems like the right time to mention just how much Sophie Christensen adds to Valhalore’s sonic identity. Being responsible for the wind instruments, Sophie carries most of the band’s melodic ideas, giving songs an identifiable folk sound that’s often contrasted by the earth-shattering guitars behind that produce songs that manage to be both catchy and heavy without sacrificing any essence of originality.
No better is this exemplified than in my must-listen-to favourite of this album, the penultimate track entitled Heart of The Sea. This track features Anna Murphy of Swiss progressive metal band Cellar Darling providing powerful vocals that when paired with Neate’s offer sections that range from uplifting and beautiful to eerie and melancholic. Murphy here also plays the hurdy-gurdy which gives the song a real sea-shanty pirate-metal feel but manages to be restrained and tasteful enough that the track truly feels epic. The storytelling sonically and lyrically narrates a tale that’s begging to be heard with the sheer amount of ideas bursting out of the track. To top it all off, Heart Of The Sea ends – with a dare I say – John Petrucci-esque guitar solo. The fact a song like this can even exist at under six minutes is astounding. The trade-off of lyrics, instruments and atmosphere is done so well you’ll forget this is only Valhalore’s second album and instead be lost in the absolute heights of Beyond The Stars‘ musical peaks. This song is not optional. You need to hear this one.
Almost too quickly we get to the final song A Walk Among The Stars, a fitting name as it carries us out of the space these tracks have brought us to. The finale here is thematically satisfying as an orchestra of blast beats, layered leads, thunderous rhythm, melodic pipes and a choir of vocals lead us out of an album so full of ideas that again I wonder how it’s possible to contain it all. Beyond The Stars is such a cohesive package that never seems to have a low point.
I’m grateful bands like Valhalore exist, as they differ so much from current metal culture and offer something so unique and outside the box that it strengthens your love for whatever music you’re into. They are definately a band to check out no matter what style of music you’re into.
