Kingdom of the Night II

Kingdom of the Night II is a work on which Axxis, while returning to its own representative world, powerfully draws a new chapter with the current band’s playing and the latest production. True to its ambitious title, evoking the legendary debut, it splendidly binds the catchy appeal of the early days and a modern, sure weight. Striking, splendid keyboards, soaring singing and the guitar’s powerful drive bind together, richly generating the splendor particular to melodic metal. From the drive of the powerful opening title track “Kingdom of the Night II” and the aggression of “Venom” to a cut like “Beyond the Sky,” every song is engaging, while cuts like “The War” and “Soulfire” convey the work’s fullness. Bernhard Weiss’s soaring vocals are powerfully in sharp form throughout. A record that, even with a sure reference to the past, by no means ends as mere reproduction. Many high-quality songs holding brightness and a sure drama line up, and the content is widely open to both long-standing fans and those seeking a new entry. An engaging, fulfilling work of Axxis that showed the height of the creative drive even as veterans — a record where the band’s maturity shines.