Subfire – ‘Define The Sinner’: A deeply metal album

The Subfire are here to reinforce all of the above, with their debut album titled ‘Define The Sinner’. The record contains ten powerful tracks, which make the band's launch all the more deafening. The album was officially released on September 10, 2021.

The first single and the fire simmering beneath!

Not long has passed since the band released their first released their first single, titled ‘Fate Of A Sinister World’. Along with it, they also announced their collaboration with Symmetric Records, which brought along with it ‘Define The Sinner’. Seems like good news comes all at once! The band draws influences from Helloween, Judas Priest and Blind Guardian, and is characterised by a powerful sound and big intensity.

Quite some time has passed for all of the above, since the band is a musical project whose journey began back in 2004. Subfire hail from Livadeia, Boeotia, from where, after many gigs, festival appearances, and many lineup changes, the band settled into the sound that represents their tracks. The music composition belongs to Giorgos Larentzakis and the lyrics are handled by Συμεών Σανιδάς along with Γιώργο. All of this produced by the power metal mastermind, Bob Katsionis.

On the music

Things here are pretty straightforward. Subfire have a profile straight out of the pages of power and heavy metal. We're talking about a sound with fast rhythmic parts, powerful guitars and epic vocals. Starting with the rhythm section and drums, we find Συμεών (Συμεών Σανιδάς – Drums). The rhythms are generally straight with a fast tempo, as the style of the music dictates anyway. The drums are characterized by heft in every hit, a fact that inflates the songs' backdrop sound. The rhythm duo is completed by  Rindra (Rindra Rado – bass). The bass sound is 'clean', without unnecessary distortion. It does, however, have very pronounced low frequencies, matching the drums and giving 'body' to the sound. The combination of the two rhythm instruments covers things dynamically and gives the tracks their backbone.

Guitars – Vocals

Moving on to the guitar sound, we find Giorgos (Γιώργος Λαρετζάκης – guitar, backing vocals). While the rhythm guitar parts have very intense distortion, there are moments where the sound is completely clean. These particular moments, of course, are enriched with delay, giving a sense of atmosphere to the sound. All of this, combined with the use of keyboards, gives a more Scandinavian feel to the 'Define The Sinner'. There are also some parts with acoustic and classical guitars on the album, highlighting the calmer moments of the tracks.

The Veandok (vocals) is the frontman of Subfire, while Γιώργος Λαρετζάκης backs him up on secondary vocals. Both voices are marked by clean enunciation, while being very precise in the notes they perform. What distinguishes them is a consistency in their delivery. They remain clear even when reaching higher frequencies.

On the subject matter

‘Define The Sinner’ is packed with music carrying epic elements. The songs' themes aim at the metaphysical, with emphasis placed on the phases a human soul goes through. The whole aura of the record is dark. And that comes through in the overall music of Subfire.

Editor's Choice: ‘Sacred Destinies’ and ‘Strength and Hope’

In the end, it seems the most dynamic tracks are the ones Subfire left for the beginning and the end of ‘Define The Sinner’. The ‘Sacred Destinies' starts off with an oriental riff in the Phrygian mode, sounding a lot like something VIC! might have covered. What follows, though, is different. The way it continues pushes it right up to the edge of thrash. But the changes don't stop there. The track will surprise you, since it packs in quite a few tempo shifts, plus a 'clean' bridge.

On the other hand, 'Strength and Hope' has a much darker character. And this one's a track with plenty of melodic shifts and a blistering tempo. The melodic vocal lines in the verse are impressive, pulling the listener right into the song. The highlight of the track is the 'clean' bridge, which not only features violin melodies but also throws in a really interesting shift in the drum pattern.

In conclusion

The Subfire put their stamp on an album that lays the foundation for how they'll move forward in the future. The 'Define The Sinner' is an album that strays a bit from the boundaries of classic power metal. It has a lot of elements from Scandinavian music and beyond. The band shows a willingness to bring in elements from outside its genre, like classical guitar sounds, and even violin (on 'Strength and Hope'). As a debut album, it can be called an excellent start. We're definitely expecting a worthy follow-up, now that we've got Subfire on our musical radar.

You can pre-order the record ‘Define The Sinner’ via Bandcamp.

The official music video for Subfire – Fate Of A Sinister World

From the album ‘Define The Sinner‘, out on 10 Σεπτεμβρίου 2021 via Symmetric Records.

Produced and mixed by Bob Katsionis

Recorded at Sound Symmetry Studio, Αθήνα, GR

Mastering: Νάσος Νομικός at VU Productions, GR