I was first introduced to Celestial Wizard in 2024, seeing them perform at Mad with Power and Mile High Power Fests, causing me to check out their 2022 release “Winds of the Cosmos”. I enjoyed their blend of power metal and melodeath and was curious to see how they would evolve on their next release. That release, which came out in July, “Regenesis,” shows a ton of growth and has cemented itself solidly into my metal listening rotation. This is the second new album this year embracing a Western theme (see Judicator), and honestly, it is a theme that should be better represented in metal. Musically, this is still a nice blend of power metal and melodic death metal, but it doesn’t rely on a single formula while also allowing breathing room in each composition.

Let me first call out the lead vocals, which feel like they have made a massive leap since “Winds.” Amethyst’s hybrid screaming technique reminds me a lot of Mikael Stanne, aggressive and pointed while being very intelligible, easily inviting the listener to enter the story and sing along. The cleans from Nick Daggers complement well, with some great melodies and memorable choruses. The guitars do a great job balancing the thrashy death metal riffing with soaring power metal leads and solos, while also adding variety that gives the songs a progressive flair at times. The drumming is never flashy but utilizes great technique while effortlessly navigating slower and speedier sections. The songwriting is fun and creative, and this is an album that is more fun to listen to on successive listens.

The first track serves as a nice acoustic guitar intro that sets the Western mood appropriately for “Pale Horse,” which was also the first single. The fun campfire feel quickly yields to great guitar driven metal with a thrashy groove. The dichotomy between the hybrid screams and the melodic cleans works super well, making the song very singable (check out the chorus!) while still being very heavy. Halfway through, I love the chuggy change of pace leading to the Death Dealer firing a shot, before hitting you with a great guitar solo. And I always love a late key change!

“Fangbearer” is a great mix of power and death metal, kicking things off with a nice lead guitar section. The deathy groove on the verse is countered by great use of dynamics, and I love the variety in the late long guitar solo. “She Is the Blade” is perhaps my favorite track, slower paced than many on the album but featuring plenty of meaty guitar lead. The vocal trade-offs in the pre-chorus rock, and the chorus is a fabulous earworm that will beg you to join in. I love the late guitar solo, and there is another late key change!

“Shores of Eternity” starts with a subdued strings and acoustic guitar section, keeping you grounded in the story unfolding in the West, leading into a triumphant sounding verse that hits hard. The chorus almost has a Dark Tranquillity feel to it with its slick melody complementing the hybrid screams. The guitar solo has a nice throwback feel, bringing in some feels of the West, rounding out another standout track!

The next 3 songs are a bit unique for the album as they only feature extreme vocals. “Into the Abyss” roars out of the gate in death metal glory. It is thick, heavy, and blazes ahead, complementing the heft with great harmonized guitar leads. The thrashy interlude breaks up the pace momentarily, and the late guitar solo is fun and creative. “Ride with Fire” keeps the melodeath train going, with a healthy helping of power elements. CW continues to show that they can write some great guitar solos, and I really enjoy all the leadwork here. “Wicked Master” maintains the death metal vocal attack, but musically manifests more as straight-up heavy metal with a number of great change ups throughout.

“Emerald Eyes” functions as their power ballad, which I honestly wasn’t expecting. It features no extreme vocals while demonstrating some clean vocal range, starting in a low register before returning to range more familiar from earlier tracks. I love the string intro, and the chorus is very singable, but this song did feel a bit out of place to me, but might just be personal preference.

The title track serves as the closer, and it does a great job bringing together many of CW’s best elements. This is equal parts power and death metal, with plenty of melody, and I think this song features the best drumming on the album. I love the choir-like cleans at the end after the guitar virtuoso solo, finishing off a great album nicely.

This is a great album and a nice step up from their previous release. Celestial Wizard does a great job blending power and death metal while featuring a heavy helping of guitar lead. I do think they are at their best when the extreme and cleans duel and trade off, but it is hard to complain when the songwriting is this good. I am looking forward to seeing them again at this year’s Mile High Power Fest!

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