9th January 2023

Review: “Rogue Five” by Admire The Grim

Hailing from Lappeenranta Finland, Admire The Grim are a quintet who began life in early 2021 and have already gained a reputation for creating a Melodic Death Metal sound that was forged by the likes of Arch Enemy, Children of Bodom and Dark Tranquillity in the late 90s and early 2000’s of the genre. Vocalist Katri Snellman, guitarists Jani Loikkanen and Sirja Ojaniemi are joined by bassist Kalle Raatikainen and drummer Tommi Vante in cutting adrift as stand alone first single “Storm the Barricade” and instead focusing on new tales of darkness…

This maybe a first stab in the dark from Admire The Grim but it is by no means lacking any of the qualities or musicanship that you would expect to find on the work of any seasoned bands. An instantly gratifying experience, “The Flood” finds Snellman roaring like a Alissa White-Gluz while also showcasing her clean vocal abilities when the occasion should allow. There is no let up in the frenetic energy of the riffs and driving rhythms that give the cut that familiar appeal, while being different enough to allow the band to hold their own. The percussive pummeling of “Mad Queen of the Second Sun” is incredible, the drum sound as crisp and clean as they come while the guitar parts fly with the ease and precision of bands like Trivium with energy and flamboyance that is as addictive as the latest designer drug. The song which gives the band it’s name flips the script on the previous unclean and clean vocal balance with Snellman focussing on the latter to give the song anthemic qualities in the chorus and a dull ache in the verse, both if which work phenomenally well. There is no doubting the bravery of it but it works because they haven’t sacrificed any of their style for the substance choice and they waste no time in flipping the script back to the previous balance for the EP title track “Rogue Five” to let sleeping dogs lie. A grand finale as vibrant as any other, this one brings the sense of fun as well as the odd gang chant to the King’s table and will no doubt go down a storm live, although some intensity of rehearsal will be required to nail the blistering solo this one has at its heart. The band say that they have developed a lot in the past year and are still progressing. On this evidence they have set a very high benchmark to attain [8.5/10]

Track Listing