Album Review: Riddles of the Sycophants by Ghosts of Atlantis (Hammerheart Records)

Ghosts of Atlantis rise from the depths once again to deliver their second album, Riddles of the Sycophants, due for release on the 27th of October, 2023 via Hammerheart Records.

The UK based symphonic black/exteme metal band arrived on the scene in early 2021 with their debut album, 3.6.2.4 in some style. An album that had a real impact on me personally, but also on the UK metal scene. A debut it may have been but it was clear this wasn’t a band of amateurs starting off on a career. It felt seasoned, professional and saw Ghosts of Atlantis go from being unheard of to appearing, for example, on the Sophie Lancaster stage at Bloodstock Festival. In the years that passed between 3.6.2.4 and Riddles of the Sycophants, the band have kept themselves very busy and at the forefront of metal fans minds.

Whether through regular social media engagement, the odd single including a cover of Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb and a new track called Devils Dawn for the soundtrack to the supernatural horror movie, Witch, and many, many shows and festival appearances, Ghosts of Atlantis are hopefully reaping the rewards of that work with this new album, the move from Black Lion Records to Hammerheart Records and an upcoming tour across the UK and Europe supporting Fear Factory alongside Butcher Babies and Ignea. You can get tickets for that, here.

The Suffolk based band continue the concept of 3.6.2.4 with Riddles of the Sycophants as survivors of the fall of Atlantis arise and face the perils and challenges of the new world they arrive in. This concept and songs are delivered in a style likened to Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir and Behemoth but as much as I love all three of those bands, Ghosts of Atlantis have a more theatrical, more bombastic style close maybe only to Dimmu Borgir when the full orchestra was in play.

Riddles of the Sycophants writing started with Colin Parks in 2022 and was recorded at Devilhead Studios in Suffolk in late 2022. It was mixed and mastered by Ronnie Björnström.

Ghosts of Atlantis are Phil Primmer on vocals, Colin Parks on guitar and clean vocals, Dex Jezierski on guitar, Al Todd on bass and Rob Garner on drums. Riddles of the Sycophants also features guest appearances from James Stewart (Decapitated), Christian Alvestam (Scar Symmetry), Anna KiaRa (Imperial Age) and Drake Mefestta (DiAmorte).

The synopsis of Riddles of the Sycophants was explained by the band (I have cut some bits from this to make it higher level for length):

After the heroic actions of the Atlantean people in 3.6.2.4, those lucky enough to escape the great floods, now wash ashore on a new land. Word has now spread across the lands and seas, of those that survived. Tales begin circulating of  the survivors who have won favour with the gods. These riddles from Sycophants, cause great unrest, and set in motion chaos and destruction.

Out of fear, the seal on Pandora’s box is removed in the hope of bringing some balance of  power on earth. Meanwhile, the greed and desire of humanity, causes catastrophic consequences, bringing forth destruction so devastating, the Ghosts Of Atlantis travel to the Three Pillars once again, to open a portal. Riddles Of Sycophants is a collection of stories featuring many known, and lesser-known characters from across different mythologies and takes inspiration from various nations’ folklore.

Riddles of the Sycophants comes with 9 tracks on it and around 50 minutes of metal to get stuck into starting with the album opener, March of the Titans. A slightly uneasy introduction with gentle but off kilter orchestral touches starts things off before the drums, guitars and fuller orchestra take control and transform into a catchy and heavy number. The harsh vocals join in bellowing out with real intent and power. Clean backing vocals add another layer of depth while the drums and bass pound away and despite how heavy this track is, how punchy it is, it is remarkably cinematic and catchy.

The chorus is clearly distinguishable and has the coolest beat as the album name gets shouted out. I always love the little magical moments Ghosts of Atlantis deliver that elevate tracks from good to great. As the song slows, the clean vocals take the lead before a gloriously harmonised clean and harsh vocal section grabs your imagination and drags you on the journey with them. Chuck in a banging solo and an even better transition back into the vocals and chorus and you have another instant hit.

The first single from Riddles of the Sycophants comes next with Lands of Snow. This song has been getting a lot of play time from me and I can honestly say that, without having heard all of this album yet, this is the best song Ghosts of Atlantis have written to date. It is the most imaginative and atmospheric song with an amazing flow. Heavy but catchy as hell, morose but somehow empowering. You feel cold listening to it.

It really showcases what Ghosts of Atlantis are about, and what they can achieve. Insane composition, the choir, the vocals both clean and harsh that just seem more powerful than ever. Drums and bass that make you shudder and guitars offering riffs and melodies that hypnotise you. It completely blankets you and holds you in the concept and also has a really cool video too. This is a jaw dropping song that leaves you feeling more like you have experienced something, rather than just heard something.

Empires Burn at Dawn is up next and brings more quality with it. Neat melodies in the intro combine with some more choir work. Crunchy riffs and beats take over and bring the force alongside the powerful growls. The cleans and growls work off of each other so well, occasionally combining to create a gloriously impactful sound. The emphatic chorus hits hard with loads of power but still while mainitaining that hook driven catchiness. The orchestral elements fill the track out nicely too.

The second single comes next with The Lycaon King, a punchy and aggressive track that has a nice driving tempo to it. The verses are real foot tapping, head bangers with a nice stop start riff and drum beat and a big dollop of choirs in the background. It builds up to an absolute banger of a chorus that fully utilises the power and precision of both vocalists. I haven’t heard them sound this good before. The range, the tone changes – it’s all just stepped up another level.

The catchy as hell instrumental section is fucking great and brings a little spoken word in before it starts writhing and transforming again back into an oppressive and aggressive track pummeling you with those drum and bass lines. We even get a bit of a breakdown in the slightly maniacal “feed” section and following that an epic sounding transition back into the chorus. The song writing here on Riddles of the Sycophants is really admirable.

We move on with The Alkomost and I am once again blown away. Mixing things up a bit here, Ghosts of Atlantis bring the longest and one of the most epic sounding tracks on Riddles of the Sycophants. The melodies in the intro are gorgeous and work wonderfully over the quick tapped drums. As the vocals come in, still harsh but slower and clearer, sitting in with a stunning guitar melody and slower beat, you can’t help but smile. The chorus brings both vocalists to the forefront but with Colin Parks cleans leading and sounding brilliant. The second verse sees a change up as the drums rain fire down on us and Phil Primmer’s harsh vocals take control.

Still those melodic guitar lines appear in gaps in singing, or in the background, as we get led back onwards to another massive verse with the slower shouts and from there back into the stunning chorus. The second chorus leads into a cleaner sung section that is different to everything I have ever heard from Ghosts of Atlantis to date. That’s really cool and showcases an even greater range with the clean vocals. Another considerable weapon in their already considerable arsenal. We move into a gentle melodic section before faded spoken vocals start to work back in. I really appreciate how even in the spoken sections, both vocalists are used to give a contrast in tone. Clever stuff.

Sacremental is up next and brings a creepy whispered vocal intro over a nice atmospheric sound. It lulls you in, just enough so that when it suddenly explodes into life, it shakes you a bit. A cool little guitar bend, an assault of riffs, drums and bass all backed by orchestras and choirs while the vocalist roars out throat ripping vocals – damn that’s good. The chorus is great again, bringing that familiar combination of powerful cleans and harmonised harsh vocals in different parts. There’s that brief guitar bend again. Ah, the little moments. The verses really do hit hard and heavy here and contrast wonderfully to the sudden bursts of clean singing in the chorus. This song has some serious rhythm too, involuntary head banging is a common theme across this track.

A Maiden’s Scorn has a nice flute (I think) intro that is more than a little hypnotic before choirs and a huge crunch of guitars and drums pick the song up. As the pace picks up we get a cool back and forth between choirs and harsh vocals while the drums and riffs pummel away at you. There is a Mediterranean feel to the orchestral melody, which makes sense considering the locations of our concept, that plays in the background of the verse. This song leans quite heavily on the choirs and additional female vocal lines that sit just behind the main vocals and riffs. It’s a wonderful sound, really offering an anthemic, grandiose soundscape yet while still being unrelenting in it’s heaviness and force.

We move on to our penultimate track on Riddles of the Sycophants with Behind the Wall. The opening piano melody is gorgeous and lulls you in nicely, ready for a sudden explosion into life with harsh vocals that have a clearer edge to them. Quick drums, thick bass and driving guitars push the song forward. A drop back into a whisper and gentle tinkling of keys gives you time for breath before the passionate chorus gets delivered, led by clean vocals. I really love the orchestral backing and choirs again and there is another really strong solo, a bit of a feature on Riddles of the Sycophants. It’s a powerful song, quite emotional but it also feels quite uplifting and empowering.

So we reach the end of this phenomenal slab of music with the title track, Riddles of the Sycophants. Having hit us with a slower, melodic track beforehand, Ghosts don’t mess around here going straight at you from the opening notes. Big orchestral sounds combine beautifully with the drums, bass and guitars. The rhythm and beat in the verses is really cool and the vocals exhude power yet also an element of mysticism. It leads into an epic chorus, big and powerful driven by the clean vocals but with female backing, just subtley in the background I think.

The layered harsh vocals in the second verse have a real impact as does that continuing crunch of riffs and drums. Ghosts will want to go out with a bang and lead us towards the end by first dropping down into a melodic keys section with gentler vocals. It starts building, the hairs on your arms start raising as the vocals seem to seamlessly transition from clean to harsh and we are let loose in a mosh pit moving section with pummeling drums and bass and hard hitting riffs. Once we are suitably pummeled, the chorus comes back in with additional vocal layers to ensure the ending hits huge levels of epicness and leave us grateful and breathless.

And so Riddles of the Sycophants comes to a close and I can honestly say that they have done it again, following 3.6.2.4 up with an absolutely beast of an album here. Ghosts of Atlantis have again managed to bring a concept to life with a sound, songs and style that breathes life into these tales. The continuation from their debut into this new album is there in concept and sound but the band have grown significantly too and there are clear evolutions in the song writing, song and album structure and overall sound. Don’t fear though fans, this is still the Ghosts of Atlantis we have come to love, just bigger and bolder.

One of the things I adored most about their debut was the songwriting and the way tracks flowed, changed direction, then flowed again and that is even more prevalent on Riddles of the Sycophants. Helped by the addition of different vocal tones, choirs, solos and maybe even the guests, the band have more directions to turn in. These songs, all of them, impress me so much in how often they change, how many transitiomns there are, yet, somehow, it all flows, all feels so very natural. The songs twist, they turn, they writhe and pulse and leave you feeling hypnotised, awe struck and often a little emotional.

Within all of the dark majesty though, there are also plenty of times to just put your head down, stomp around, punch the air and work that neck out. We all need that too and Riddles of the Sycophants is so finely balanced, all boxes are ticked here. You want epic, intelligent, imaginative, dark, heavy music full of crunchy riffs, big orchestras, choirs, powerful harsh and clean vocals, huge solos and neck breaking rhythms? You want all of that in a single album? Well Riddles of the Sycophants is the album you have been looking for.

Preorder Riddles of the Sycophants now from Napalm Records, here, or from Hammerheart Records, here. If you prefer your music to be delivered digitally, check this link out for presave options to your chosen streaming provider.

Ghosts of Atlantis Links

Website – Facebook – Instagram – YouTube – Hammerheart Records –