Armed Cloud is a Dutch symphonic metal band, formed by guitarist Wouter van der Veen and bassist Boris Suvee in 2011. The current line-up came together in 2013, with Wouter’s brother, keyboardist Remco van der Veen, plus vocalist Daan Dekker and drummer Rico Noijen. This is their second album, and they feel that the best way to describe their music is to think of Fates Warning, Korn, Avenged Sevenfold, Rainbow, and Savatage, and every combination thereof. To be honest, the Korn and Rainbow influences are so minor as to be almost unhearable, but I was somewhat surprised with Daan’s delivery style, as he actually manages to remind me of Peter Garrett from Midnight Oil, not a band normally thought of within the metal environment (although in concert I can attest that the Oil are far heavier and dynamic than one could ever imagine).
It is the vocals that actually make the band stand out from the crowd, as they combine well with the very bottom end sound of the band, who sometimes lose themselves within the bass, as the drums, bass and guitar are all at the low end of the register, with the keyboards not really providing the lightness one might expect, it is all left to the vocals. There are some times when the overall effect can become a little muddy, but for the most part this is an interesting approach, and one that does make them stand out from others in the genre.
