Hailing from Wehrheim, Hesse in Germany we have DYING ANGEL, a band that has been around since 2019 and plays Heavy Metal, with a strong connection to the NWOBHM era. On November 1 2024 they released their first full EP on their own accord. The rather interesting result, “Angels Rising” is currently reaching me through my computer speakers. It contains six songs that span just over 26 minutes. I wanted to know more about the band, but the information on the net, even on their own site, is very sparse. So, as there is not much about their past to be found, let’s get straight to the descriptions of how I see and rate this release.

What first comes to mind when first listening is that the sound of “Angels Rising” is rather flat. It could have done with a bit more depth, a lot more dimensions than just the one I am listening to. You would have thought that with the current technologies available, delivering a poor sound quality is nigh on impossible. But here we are, with DYING ANGEL proving it is still possible. The fact is, the band doesn’t play bad music at all, but if you are not able to give it the platform it needs sound-wise, you are selling it short. In sporting terms, you are already trailing by at least a few points. And that would not have been necessary, as “Angels Rising” is full of decent songs that could easily lift your spirit. Now they just plod along and leave your memory as soon as they have ended.

For those NWOBHM enthusiasts that are fans of singer Brian Ross, you might want to check out “Angels Rising”, because DYING ANGEL singer Michael Vaupel sounds like him on a regular basis. He especially reminds me of him of how he always sounded in BLITZKRIEG. The SATAN comparison is not so strong, but you will undoubtedly find some similarities in that direction. All together I have to say that for me “Angels Rising” is an EP that could have been a rather surprising or even good one if DYING ANGEL would have taken the time to work on improving the sound. Not that it would changed it into a world class one, but it would have lifted it above the average area it is currently floating around in. that is one area that DYING ANGEL can work on before they decide to hand us a full-length studio album.