When Manilla Road founder Mark Shelton passed in 2018, the remaining members of the band respectfully put the name to rest as well but vowed to continue making music. It's taken five years, but we finally have music from Sentry, the band consisting of former Manilla Road vocalist Bryan Patrick, drummer Andreas "Neudi" Neuderth, bassist Phil Ross, with guitar duties handled by Kalli Coldsmith, who also spends time in Jameson Raid with Neudi. If you guessed Sentry's music sounds like later Manilla Road, you hit the nail on the head. All the musicians involved had to know the comparisons with Manilla Road would be unavoidable, so let's get to them. The two songs on this promo (which are also set to appear on their debut album to be released in 2024) are quite similar to some of the slower, simmering tracks from albums like Mysterium and Playground of the Damned. Think of songs like "Do What Thou Wilt" from the former or "Grindhouse" from the latter. The mix is rather bass heavy, and I don't hear much of Coldsmith's guitars except for the solos, something I hope isn't the norm for the album. Lyrically, they are in the same vein of mystical and occult topics, which I'm sure is the result of Patrick watching Shelton at work all the years they worked together. Everyone sounds pretty much like you would expect them to sound and Sentry seems to be following a trajectory that can be easily traced back to Manilla Road. "Heavensent" and "Black Candles" are good songs, listenable with some catchiness but not quite as exciting as I was hoping for, sticking to a slower, doomier brand of heavy metal. I love Manilla Road, so I like these songs and have high hopes for the album, but I'm a little underwhelmed by Sentry's first release.
