If ever there was a band who encompass honesty, relatability and downright hard graft, it is Manchester melodic Metalers Absolva. Justice is their seventh album, and if that is indeed a lucky number and scores the band some proper food on-the-table success, then no one will deserve it more.
Absolva – Justice
Release Date: 16 May 2025
Words: Brian Boyle
Absolva are now a hormone raging thirteen years old, and by the sound of opener Freedom And Glory, you could say their balls have well and truly dropped. Featuring a collaboration with Thorium vocalist David Marcelis, it is nothing short of an electrifying statement of intent. 
The album’s artwork depicting gun-toting skeletal outlaws marching into town hellbent on mayhem accurately sums up what the band have dished out in the live arena since day one.
But in the studio, they are a much more controlled animal. Anthemic thumpers like The Thrill Of The Chase and Hero In Your Life will rip you a new one in a concert environment, but brand spanking new and straight out of the wrapper, they are a riotous celebration of the band as a songwriting unit.
In Against The Odds Of Time, Absolva have created an absolute monster. With guest vocals from Canadian singer Stu Block (Into Eternity, Annihalator, Iced Earth) giving it an extra gear, it is a tune that might take a few people totally by surprise.
With power and colossal melody in abundance and a healthy dash of classic Maiden, it is worth the asking price alone.
The title track is not far behind it, either. David Marcelis swings by again for this rampaging Metal feast. But the vocals take a backseat on this one. This is about the guitar kinship between brothers Luke and Chris Appleton, who have proved over the years to be the closest newer British Metal has to a Smith/Murray or a Downing/Tipton combo.
While half the album includes a guest vocalist, it does not dilute it one bit. Passing on an opportunity to team up with the great Ronnie Romero (Rainbow, Lords Of Black) would not have given us Find My Identity, one of the genuine great rock duets there has been for a very long time.
And they certainly could not leave their fellow road companion Blaze Bayley out of proceedings. Having doubled as the Brummie’s band for many years, the chemistry on Atlas (War Between The Gods) is, of course, on fire, and it is no coincidence that the tribal rouser is the album’s standout track.
The recent departure of bassist Karl Schramm will not halt the momentum that this album has no doubt given the band. A new chapter has begun with the re-recruitment of guitarist Tom Atkinson and Luke Appleton returning to bass duties for 2025.
Absolva are better than the cult following they currently enjoy, and the quality of the marauding closer, The Streetfighters Of Blackford Bridge, confirms this is a Metal album of major league quality.
Wouldn’t it be great to see this bona fide British Metal act kick the saloon doors of the UK album charts wide open and mark their territory? Now, that would be justice.
Absolva release Justice on 16 May 2025 via Rocksector Records. More details, including pre-order details and UK Festival dates, are available from Absolva.com.
