Hump Day Hot Ticket: Serenity “United”

Photo credit: Manuel Janus Mair

Admittedly, there has been a bit of a pattern here lately, and hopefully this is a precursor of better things to come at this blog; meaning that it will become more commonplace to begin spotlighting more international acts for this feature. (Hey, as much as I love to showcase the independent bands, I also want to draw more traffic here so that many people can learn about those lesser-known artists in the first place!)

As I did last Friday with my review of The Dark Element, I am once again reviewing a new video from another band that I have written about within the last month. Releasing their second single in time for their album release on Friday, Serenity has another new video, this time for the song “United”.

Truth be told, I look forward to any opportunity to write about Serenity, because I absolutely love their music. I regret that the start of this feature last year happened only after the last video for their previous album was released, because I would have gladly reviewed all of them. Over the last 2 years, Serenity has quickly earned a spot among my most favorite bands, which says a lot in regards to how much I love their music. Quite frankly, I think they are one of the best symphonic metal bands out there, and don't feel they get nearly as much attention or recognition as I believe they deserve. Then again, this is why I write music reviews, so that maybe (in some small way) I can help bring attention to all of this great music!

That being said, on to the video! Aesthetically, “United” has the same look and feel as the “Lionheart” video, which suggests that perhaps Lionheart is a sort of concept album, or that there are some connecting threads throughout the songs. The “United” video picks up right where the “Lionheart” video left off, even though on the album, the song order is reversed. 

When the video begins, we see the soldiers in full armor, brandishing sword and shield, prepared to follow King Richard Lionheart to war. The darkened cave also makes a return, only this time it is more of a performance video, and what a show they put on for this rallying war cry of an anthem! The royal standard is proudly unfurled behind them, as great bursts of flame blast in front of them in a remarkable pyrotechnic display. What a great way to give the viewer a feel of what it must be like at a Serenity concert, right? All of this is going on, and we are not but a little more than 30 seconds into the video...then, to make things more interesting, there's a guy swallowing fire and spitting out flame! Come to think of it, there is a lot of fire in this video, but it fits perfectly with the frenetic pace of the song. It is a fiery, passionate song, with a guitar solo that is positively smoking! Needless to say, an abundant display of pyro is an appropriate visual for such a fierce track.

For more information on Serenity, visit their official website.

Thanks to Claudia Steinlechner at Napalm Records.