OSIRIS, a grand name for a band. Fitting that they are named after the Egyptian god of the dead, ruler over the resurrected in the afterlife. After their initial hiatus in 1998; OSIRIS returned in 2014 and following a spree of single releases in 2017 and 2018, have dropped their full length album "Meanders Of A Soul" and I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited for what this could be. So, without further ado, let's get stuck in.

The artwork plays into the band's Egyptian heritage, with Anubis holding up the severed head of some poor soul, I'm sure that none of us would wish to be in that position! Opening is "Seasons Of Flooding Chaos (Akhet Nw Isfet)" and it is an introduction full of grandeur, suspense and tension that builds into an eruption as "Of Hate, Passion And Eternity" explodes into life. Full of electric energy, intense riffs and a drum tracking that just reverberated deep within my core. The melodic additions added so much depth to the music, whether it was the subtle traditional stylings, or the more grandiose in your face sections that just served to act as a statement.

But the music continues to grow, to develop before our eyes, well... ears. The melodic guitar sections are just delightful. Scott's harsh vocals the perfect accompaniment to the instrumental tracking. There is an undeniable beauty to the music, there is depth and emotion, pain and anguish, but more than anything else there is an unwavering passion to Heavy Metal that no one can dispute.

Structurally and I guess in length, it feels as though "Self Destructive Nature", at 7 minutes, towers above the rest of the tracking. But musically it just feels larger than life as well, as though it rises up and blots out the sun, oppressing down on you as a listener. In the best of ways of course. Because of this effect it had on me, I have to say that this felt like the most complete track of the album. And I say that loosely, as the rest of the tracking was not lacking anything, and indeed the album was not incomplete. But if I had to recommend a singular track to introduce someone to OSIRIS, then undoubtedly it would be "Self Destructive Nature".

 Whilst there is plenty of intense and dense sections. Take a minute to enjoy the stripped back vulnerability of "Tears Of Isis". The track delivers a much more delicate and gentle experience, but at the same time, it does not sacrifice the intensity and strength of the tracks that have come prior. "Tears Of Isis" is another stand out track of this album for me.

Something that will not go amiss to any listener is the carefully composition of the orchestrations. As they delicately weave a tapestry of melodic finesse and deliver some cultural heritage of the band. With an ambience at times created that were reminisce for myself of sometime that I spent working in the desert in Oman and getting to know the locals and their music, and the track that delivered this the most for me was "Endless Sands". It might just be from the name of the track, but I can remember being in the desert reading next to my vehicle and something about this track just transports me back there, it is exquisite. The undertones transported me back to there and it was wonderful. But something that stood out to me, even more so, was the guitar mastery that was on display track after track.

The album is just an utter masterclass in Melodic Metal and Symphonic Metal, the musicality is sublime, the structure impeccable and the overall flow of the album seamless. This is one of the best, if not the best, album I have had the utter pleasure of reviewing in my time at Metal Temple. And I honestly mean it when I say that it was my pleasure.