Paragon Zero hail from Hungary and little is known about the band. A short EP of three songs and A Pestilence cover show a young band still mixing their influences in hopes of finding their own unique style.
Riff types can be summed up into long cadenced tremolo picked with an NWOHBHM sense of melody, first generation Death metal power chord riffs and consonant arpeggios in the minor key. The band have a very restrained vocabulary of riffs and melody types which works best for these simple songs. There is very little chromatic quality to the riffs as they stick to the natural minor scale to convey a grandiose sense of adventure as seen in Iron Maiden’s music. During the fourth repetition of these tremolo picked riffs the band will expand with an additional melody which enriches the riffs.
The songs are arranged within the melodic narrative framework but simplified with riffs being repeated a large number of times before the band transitions to the next idea. An introduction generally consisting of arpeggios will lead towards a tremolo picked riff that will be the song’s central idea. The band then introduce the simple Death metal riff which will then progress towards a calmer break before exploding towards the tremolo picked riff or a variant of it. The major issues with these songs are that while they have vision they lack direction. Only “An Existence Beyond Sane Reality” has a satisfying conclusion with the rest of the other songs ending with more of a whimper than a bang. The arrangements fail to conjure a story or the evolution of idea and are stuck within the same sentiment of grandeur with little very little in regards towards dynamics and variation within that sentiment. This EP showcases a good base from which Paragon Zero have every tool necessary to make some excellent Black metal and a genuine love for Death metal (as seen on the excellent Pestilence cover) that could be the beginning of something great.