I apologise for this taking a little longer than intended to post to the site, but here’s the first and currently only review for the Facilis Descensus Averno review. A big thank you to Tom for the write up on Facebook.
I was born in 1974, so I grew up in an era of Ronnie James Dio, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and bands of that style, and aesthetic; so I dig when artists reach back to that time, and pull influence from it. Steve Blower is an artist that does just that, and his four track E.P., Facilus Descenscus Averno, is a total throwback to the heyday of the metal genre.
“The Whisperer” opens up in a classic sounding, short solo. The verse takes over with a more Judas Priest tone, but the vocals are definitely influenced by BRUCE DICKINSON (IRON MAIDEN) era Iron Maiden; the chorus finds the music taking that Maiden tone as well.
The intro to “Out of This World” is a total Maiden riff fest, with some lead parts over it. This one is an instrumental, and really shows how much respect Steve has for that Iron Maiden, classic metal vibe. The riffing is very cool, and the harmony pieces, and leads, are all awesome.
“Haunting Misery” is more Judas Priest influenced, and has since really great riffing; the Rob Halford influenced vocal part is really badass sounding. Very cool tune to finish out the release.
This is a pretty cool E.P. from this solo artist. There is a heavy Maiden vibe throughout the album, but, for guys my age, that is not a bad thing at all. Stop, go give it a listen, and maybe buy it too. Enjoy!!
Steve Blower 