heavy-metal-darkness: Starlight Ritual | Rogue Angels

Monday, October 13, 2025

Starlight Ritual | Rogue Angels | High Roller Records

Release Date: 31.10.2025

Formats: CD/LP/MC/Digital

Genre: Traditional Heavy Metal

Country: Canada

Starlight Ritual formed in Montréal in 2013 when guitarists J.F. Bertrand and Dan Toupin decided to start a project leaning toward doom and psychedelic metal. Their direction shifted once vocalist and bassist Damian Ritual joined in 2014, giving the band a more classic heavy metal spirit. After their 2015 self-titled release and the “Age Of The Universe” EP in 2016, they struck gold with “Sealed In Starlight” in 2021, where their epic, melodic, and hard-driving identity took full shape. “Rogue Angels”, their first release through High Roller Records, continues this path with more precision and firepower, showing a band completely at home with their sound.

This album is traditional heavy metal through and through, melodic, riff-driven, and written with a love for the old-school flame that once burned in bands like Manowar, Running Wild, and Rainbow. The production has that honest, no-frills energy that makes it easy to imagine these songs roaring from a smoky stage somewhere in Montréal. The guitars dominate the space, with riffs that balance melody and power, moving between galloping rhythms and mid-tempo marches. The solos are expressive and sharp, offering melodic phrases that stick in your head.

Damian Ritual’s voice commands attention. There’s a clear influence from the late Steve Grimmett and Paul Di’Anno, but it’s filtered through his own tone, raw, powerful, and occasionally theatrical. His bass playing adds muscle, giving the songs a full, grounded sound. Toupin’s guitars bring the classic metal vibe, full of energy and bite, while Bertrand’s drumming locks everything down with drive and precision.

The album’s flow is strong and steady. Tracks like “Rogue Angels” and “Crusaders” have that gallant, heroic quality you expect from a band that calls its style “epic hard rocking traditional metal”. “Of Words” and “The Law” show their ear for hooks, while “Exodus” stretches into a slower, grander territory, the kind of song that belongs in the closing act of a great live show. “Aftermath” wraps things up in a way, like the last line of a good story.

“Rogue Angels” is straight heavy metal written by lads who clearly understand what makes this genre exciting. There’s melody, energy, and heart in every song. The band doesn’t chase trends or nostalgia, they just play the kind of metal that makes you bang your head and raise your fist.

Score: 8.0