Soulful yet heavy with a sound at times reminiscent of the rawness of Sevendust’s debut if fronted by Sierra Kay of VersaEmerge, L.A. via Melbourne’s Bellusira harness an energy that makes their second offering, The Healing, a 2015 shining light. Add some guy named Koichi Fukuda (Static-X!!!) to the mix and this band is truly one to be reckoned with in today’s modern metal scene.
“The Fight” gets things started with an echoed cymbal crash and punctuated bass thump laying down just the right amount of Pop and heaviness to ease new listeners in and set the tone until “Dance With Me” and its, ahem, static guitar riffs really starts the rocking off right. From there things get really interesting. “Black Seed” has this great old school nu-metal vibe with droning guitars and a solid low end while “How Far” delves deeper into what Bellusira has to offer with underlying synths bubbling below an almost Reggae groove.
While the songs speak for themselves here, they’re propelled above the rest of the dregs out there by Crystal Ignite’s stellar delivery especially on a track like “Sister”. From the quiet opening, Ignite’s voice brims and quivers with emotion getting stronger and stronger building towards an epic chorus where her voice just soars.
Elsewhere, “Sever” hammers the heaviness home as Ignite’s voice snakes around Tosha Jones blistering pummeling and Mark Dalbeth’s low end. “Pieces” is almost the perfect modern rawk ballad with a solid piano line leading up to a catchy chorus while “Redemption” channels Korn almost with a David Silveria-style backbeat a la “Got The Life”.
Throughout The Healing, though, there’s new spins on things you’ve thought you heard before but never like this making the album a fresh, welcome addition to any hard rock fans collection.
The Healing is out on October 16th through Pavement Entertainment. Buy yours here and then be sure to check out more on Bellusira here.