Trial (Swe): Sisters of the Moon

Showing off a new vocalist in Arthur W. Andersson, Sweden's Trial bring us a new two song EP Sisters of the Moon, featuring a set of covers from two legends of rock and metal. The eponymous title track is a metalized version of the Fleetwood Mac song that was on their (at the time) polarizing and adventurous album Tusk, while their cover of Black Sabbath's "Die Young" is more bare bones and faithful to the original as it needs no further metal and is one of the best songs they ever penned. A pair of covers is a pretty interesting way to debut a new line-up, especially one with a new vocalist. So how does each fare and stack up to the original?

"Sisters of the Moon" as performed by Fleetwood Mac was a subdued soft-rocker, and featured Stevie Nicks doing her best lounge singer impersonation. I consider myself a casual fan of the Mac Attack, and I've always been partial to Stevie's interest in the mythical and magical as it relates to her lyrics. As such, I rather like this song as is. That said, Trial's version is fantastic and a big improvement, especially if you're a bigger fan of metal and hard rock than your local soft rock terrestrial radio station. The tempo is sped up, and the subdued clean guitars and piano are replaced by blazing dual lead guitars and a driving mid-paced beat. Andersson's debut vocal outing with the band is a good one, as he wails and swaggers his way through the song with energy and vigor. He almost comes across to me as a gruffer, Swedish version of Sebastian Bach. A really nicely done cover I'll be coming back to.

"Die Young" doesn't need much of an introduction, being arguably one of the strongest tracks on one of Black Sabbath's best albums. The elephant in the room is obviously whether or not the new guy's vocals will be up to snuff with the legendary performance of the late great Ronnie James Dio, who I'll readily admit is probably my favorite vocalist of all time. He does an admirable job, and while it's obvious he lacks the power and richness of Dio's legendary pipes, he delivers a fine performance. The rest of the band largely follows the blueprint of the original to a T, complete with intro keyboards and guitar noodleage. Well done, if by the numbers.

Trial's brand of classic old-school heavy metal lends itself well to these two tracks, but the more retooled "Sisters of the Moon" is the star here as it elevates the already good song into a great one. The lead guitars and more bouncy tempo are something the original really yearned for, especially looking back now. The cover of "Die Young" isn't as legendary as the original, but it's certainly good and competently performed. Plus, it's always fun seeing how good bands decide to pay tribute to the legends of the genre.

So, in the end this is a nifty little EP and a good way to showcase the new line-up in a bite sized manner. It won't take up much of your time for an initial listen so it's not much of an investment in that regard, but I have a hunch you'll come back to it for multiple spins just like I did.

Track Listing:
1. Sisters of the Moon (Fleetwood Mac cover)
2. Die Young (Black Sabbath cover)

Added: February 7th 2021
Reviewer: Brandon Miles
Score:
Related Link: Band @ Bandcamp
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Language: english

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