PORPHYRA hails from Queens, NYC and their new album is called "The Starmaker's Prophecy". It contains ten brand new tracks and is worthy of a bit over forty-five minutes. The band mixes a broad variation in styles, ranging from melodic hard rock to symphonic metal. Opener "City Of Gold" is easy on the ear and it also proves that we are dealing with a bunch of very gifted musicians, including some great female vocals. Singer Elaine Tuttle will immediately attract your attention, at least she did with me. "Always On My Mind" starts with another 'easy on the ear' part and when the guitars start riffing, it's quite obvious that the slightly symphonic input gives the sound of the band a much broader vision. Later on in this song, there is even a true metal feeling going on in this amazing tune. Check out the guitar parts here. "Misirlou" gives away some of the mystery around the band. The musicians are mostly hailing from Greece and this reflects in this Greek titled song, that starts off with some Greek folk elements in it. They match very well with the melodic song structures that we heard so far. The drum outro sounds very powerful. "Forever" could very well be a hit single. It has got the hooks, but it also has got that catchy feeling to sing it along quite easily. The Greek influences will return in the beginning of "St. Basil's Hymn". The male vocals dominate this time and a big part of the hymn is instrumental. Afterwards, a complete instrumental version of this particular song will follow to close the CD. The epic, progressive "The Tale Of Bygone Years" is an outstanding tune and by far the best song on the album. It's another perfect example of the band's diversity in music styles. The subtle twist and mood changes give the album a kick in the ass. The band shows its musical muscles here. "Hook Through My Heart" on the other hand is very open and so much more easy to comprehend, that you can hardly understand that this is from the same band that just cranked out this insane progressive masterpiece. The CD closes with title track "The Starmaker's Prophecy", which is another lengthy anthem that proves the high quality of this band. The sudden mood change near the end sounds truly amazing and it will keep you focused. The very last song is an instrumental version of "St. Basil's Hymn". PORPHYRA already exists for quite some time now and the first musical roots originate from a band, called PHOENIX REIGN in 1998. In 2013, the band was renamed to PORPHYRA and the Byzantine influences have become bigger and bigger. PORPHYRA is definitely worth checking out and this album "The Starmaker's Prophecy" would make a good start to exploring this band. PORPHYRA consists of Elaine Tuttle on vocals, Mike Cotoia on guest vocals, Mike 'Risko' Savvas on guitar, tzoura and additional bass, Billy Chrissochos on guitar, Gregorz 'Greg' Swirszcz on bass, Richard Khuzami on percussion and Tracey 'Tre Boogie' Beavers on drums. Guest appearances on this album are by Jesse Pieper on keyboards in "St. Basil's Hymn", Mike 'Risko' Savvas on bass, Aady Pandit on guitar in "Forever" and our good friend Mark M.E. Edwards of OVERLORDE playing the guitar solo on that incredible "The Tale Of Bygone Years". The beautiful artwork on this CD was done by Billy Chrissochos. Website: http://www.porphyraband.com. [8 points] (Toine van Poorten)
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