Short Reviews [Subterfuge - 2023 - "Philosopher"]

It has been quite some time since I have been sent material to review by the excellent Polish label Metal Mind, but I was pleased indeed to be able to hear the third album from Subterfuge as this is very special in so many ways. Formed in 2015, this double CD release is the third and final chapter of a concept trilogy, following on from ‘Projections from the Past’ (2018) and ‘Prometheus’ (2019). The band expanded their line-up for this one so Kinga Lis (vocals and violin), Mateusz Drzewicz (vocals), Tyberiusz Lodwicz (guitar) and Witold Nowak (guitar) were joined by Karolina Kozar (keyboards, flute), Krzysztof Marchwacki (bass) and Lukasz Dziubinski (drums). There are not many albums which cover so many musical bases as this one, yet somehow, they manage to sound at home in all of them. Kinga has a wonderful and clear vocal style, which contrasts well with Mateusz who can death growl with the best of them, come across as Bon Scott or even provide some straightforward rock. Musically we get blues-based Seventies rock at one point which could be AC/DC crossed with Quireboys, but at others it is tech death and then others where we have prog metal. They really do seem to be able to play whatever they want, but it always makes musical sense – I just wish I had the physical product as I am sure the booklet would be fascinating to be able to study the story more (all lyrics are in English). With a total length of just under 100 minutes, 16 songs, there is plenty here to enjoy and there is no doubt this is a load of fun, often with a nice underlying groove. This is certainly well worth checking out as while it is quite commercial it is also incredibly varied.