Collaborations are not uncommon in music world, and it was in this creative approach that Exiled Hope and Steel Forge decided to work.
The fruit of the labors of the American musician and the English band is Realm Of The Exiled, released in early 2025.
We enter their universe with A Light In The Darkness, a first epic composition that brings together majestic Gothic roots and the aggressiveness of Melodic Black/Death, allowing the vociferations to find their mark in the chaos. Heavy influences can be felt in the lead parts, as on The Calling, which starts immediately after with a similar approach, but melancholy and haunting tones quickly take over, developing a rather different atmosphere. The keyboards continue to haunt the track, as they do on the hypnotic Fate’s Design, where the effective rhythm and quieter vocal parts give an impression of melodious quietude. The orchestrations give way to harmonics, then the sound calms down with Beyond The Veil, where clean vocals appear, focusing this long track on soaring symphonic elements. The second part of the track brings back the saturated vocals, making them more menacing, then the two universes blend before giving way to the virulent Approaching Resurrection, where ferocious riffs and growls mix with a jerky rhythm, before ending to let the Epilogue close the EP with the musician’s heady keyboards.
The alliance of Exiled Hope and Steel Forge allows their two styles to cohabit in epic compositions that leave no doubt as to the complementary nature of their music. I don’t know if Realm Of The Exiled will have a next one, but it’s clear that the musicians know how to respond to each other.
75/100