Heterochrome are a rarity. They are a prog metal band from Iran. This means they could be jailed for their album “Melancholia.” The good news is that they haven’t been caught yet. Their influences range from older Opeth to doom metal. Musically, Heterochrome are VERY tight and the production on “Melancholia” rivals anything on any major label.

My favorite track is the BLISTERING instrumental “Regret” which isn’t some crazy shedfest but rather it’s about the riffs and how the guitar solo interweaves with them. Vocally, I like the interaction of the male death vocal and female clean vocals on most of the other tracks. Forgive me but I have no idea who is in the band and that anonymity is probably best since they are Iranian!

At times the female vocals get a little out of tune and operatic on songs like “Hang,” which doesn’t work for me. She is at her best when she is belting out the melodies rather than trying to be ethereal. The falsetto breaks just sound a tad off. The guitar solos are always tasty and the track “Paradise” has a really good one. “Inferno” is the closer and showcases the full arsenal of the band. They switch between loud riffs and mellower ones with ease.

While I am not always keen on the vocals, there’s a lot to enjoy here. Whether we will hear more from Heterochrome is a mystery, like the band themselves. One thing is for sure. Music is definitely a universal language and “Melancholia” is something the world should check out.

Rating: 8/10

Tracklist:
1. Cage
2. Hang
3. Regret
4. Purgatory
5. Paradise
6. Inferno

Bandcamp: heterochrome.bandcamp.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/heterochromeband