Every metal sub-genre has bands that are "sure things," bands that you know when they release a new album it is going to be at least good, if not better. Those names aren't written in stone; rather they are usually associated with a run of releases and, right now in power metal, Serious Black is one of those bands. Rise of Akhenaton, the group's seventh full-length album, has everything a power metal aficionado looks for from dazzling neo-classical guitars, speedy drumming sure to quicken the pulse, lush melodies and soaring clear vocals with no shortage of harmonies on the choruses. There are parts of Rise of Akhenaton that will likely remind listeners of other albums (some of the vocal lines on "United" remind me of Tobias Sammet's work in Avantasia while the solo from "Take Your Life" has a Ritchie Blackmore/Rainbow vibe) but the songwriting is uniformly quite good, so the occasional familiar snippet fits seamlessly. Power metal is metal for throwing your fist in the air, playing the air guitar and singing along at the top of your lungs and Rise of Akhenaton checks all those boxes. In a relatively consistent career, with some albums better than others, Serious Black is on the upswing with this one.
