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ZEPTER
Zepter

High Roller (2026)
Rating: 8/10

Here’s another band channelling a traditional metal aesthetic and actually succeeding. I’m often commenting on how the metal genre is getting clogged with throwback sound-alike’s, bands aping the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal vibe in look and groove, but so many just look contrived. Zepter, meanwhile, are an intriguing bunch out of Austria and this is their debut full-length.

To an extent, this is a typical High Roller Records release; had this been released in 1984 it would’ve been one of those hard to find obscurities that only turned up in the import racks and swallowed within a packed genre. Oddly, there is still a place for this sort of stuffy rock as wispy vocals waft majestically over easy riffs like ghostly caresses.

There’s a genuine pleasantness about songs like ‘Hit The Streets’, the gallop being so fluid and airy. The strong NWOBHM layering dominates as the foursome of Lukas Götzenberger (vocals / guitar), Stefan Bolder (guitar), Tobias Hochwagen (bass) and Alex Nemeth (drums) briskly stride through their retro repertoire.

The album gets off to a good start with opener ‘Slasher On The Highway’, and it’s smouldering gallop bridges the gap between legendary Brit rockers Satan and Danish ghouls Mercyful Fate with a dash of Blue Öyster Cult on top. ‘The Slayer’ is a big favourite of mine; reeking of vintage steel, it elegantly sweeps with such a breezy nature. Even if I’m imagining things I still can’t help but detect a whiff of the occult as seems to be a recurring theme with bands of this ilk.

This is a record that isn’t afraid to scuffle towards the lighter end of Saxon infused speed metal (‘The Exterminator’) and more foreboding mid-paced tension (‘Dark Angels’). That’s the joy here, the lacing of mysticism and grubby, gritty British vim. The crisp guitar tone and burly drums come to the fore on the enigmatic traipsing of ‘Everlasting’, coupled with some truly swashbuckling axe work on closer ‘The Lords’ and Screem cover ‘Lonely Night’.

It’s a wholesome album that bristles with an electricity even if at its core there’s such a strong air of familiarity, but if you like your metal fleet of foot, concise, occasionally stark but crackling with arcane melody then Zepter is just the tonic.

Neil Arnold

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