“Chronicles” sounds like the soundtrack to a video game that has not yet been created. The debut album by Rei Code Zero brings to mind images of futuristic cities, dimensional gateways, spectacular battles, and heroes preparing for a final confrontation. It carries the spirit of Japanese video games, comics, and films from the late 1980s, the 1990s, and the beginning of the twenty-first century. However, this is not merely a nostalgic journey. The project translates the language of those productions into contemporary instrumental metal. For a video game enthusiast, the concept alone is a major attraction, but the strong idea is also supported by very well-written music.

Rei Code Zero is the project of Italian composer and keyboardist Lorenzo Visintin. Its beginnings can be traced back to 2017, when he completed a four-year period in a band performing music from the “Final Fantasy” series. That experience clearly influenced his later artistic direction. In Nobuo Uematsu’s compositions, melody is combined with symphonic scale, rock energy, and the ability to tell stories without words. Similar qualities can be found on “Chronicles”. The name Rei Code Zero was also chosen deliberately. It is intended to sound both like the title of a Japanese video game and a concept connected with computer programming. The world of video games is therefore not merely an addition to the project, but its most important foundation.

The material was written in 2023. Visintin invited guitarist Stefano Zamburlini, who performed all the guitar parts, and saxophonist Manuel Trabucco to take part in the recording. Rei Code Zero began as a studio project, but the compositions were created with live performances in mind from the very beginning. Dream Theater, Children of Bodom, and Nobuo Uematsu are among its most important influences. The impact of Alexi Laiho’s band is especially noticeable. Fast guitar parts meet prominent keyboards, sudden tempo changes, and melodic death metal. However, Rei Code Zero does not simply copy Children of Bodom. The project draws on a similar kind of energy and combines it with the atmosphere of soundtracks from Japanese role-playing games.

The greatest strength of “Chronicles” is its ability to create a convincing adventure without vocals, dialogue, or a clearly defined storyline. The individual tracks resemble successive stages of a video game. First comes a dramatic opening and the initial battle, followed by the discovery of new locations, a moment of rest in a brightly lit city, and finally a calmer farewell. The album does not copy the sound of old consoles or try to imitate material recorded three decades ago. The production is modern, the guitars have enough weight, and the keyboards often carry the main melodies. The music remains technical and intense without losing its accessibility. Visintin understands that even the most complex composition needs a theme that stays in the listener’s memory.

“Opening” serves as a cinematic introduction and immediately shows that the saxophone will be more than an occasional arrangement detail. “About Those Who Fight” sounds like the album’s first proper battle theme. Its title brings to mind “Those Who Fight” from “Final Fantasy VII”, although Rei Code Zero does not directly quote Nobuo Uematsu’s composition. “Unleash Your Power” increases the pace, and this is where the influence of Children of Bodom becomes particularly clear. The guitar launches a fast attack, while the keyboards answer with short and distinctive motifs. “Dimensional Gates” broadens the musical space, while “Holographic Sky” stands out because of its almost choral keyboard parts. The jazz-influenced “Under The Neon Lights” most strongly evokes the atmosphere of a city at night. “Hanabi Party”, meanwhile, is a musical explosion of colour in which the guitar, keyboards, and saxophone engage in an impressive dialogue.

However, this stylistic consistency occasionally leads to repetition. In the middle section of the album, the grand themes, fast guitar parts, and bright keyboard sounds begin to rely on similar patterns. “It’s Not Over Yet!” and “Fire In The Eyes” fit the overall journey well, but they do not have a character as distinctive as “About Those Who Fight”, “Under The Neon Lights”, or “Hanabi Party”. The material would also benefit from more restrained passages and stronger dynamic contrasts. The production is clean and precise, but it sometimes smooths out the guitar sound too much. A slightly rougher tone could have emphasised the strength of the riffs more effectively. These are not, however, weaknesses that significantly reduce the quality of the album as a whole.

“Chronicles” is a highly successful debut and a much more interesting release than the phrase “video game-inspired metal” might suggest. Lorenzo Visintin, Stefano Zamburlini, and Manuel Trabucco have not created a collection of references intended only for gamers. They have produced a coherent instrumental album that works even without any knowledge of its cultural background. For listeners who grew up with Japanese video games, animation, comics, and films, however, it will be an especially rewarding journey. The closing track, “Goodbye, Satoru!”, calms the earlier emotions and leaves the listener with a sense of ambiguity. It resembles the ending of a story that invites another playthrough, so that previously missed details can be discovered. Rei Code Zero proves that the influences of Nobuo Uematsu, Dream Theater, and Children of Bodom can meet on one album without depriving it of its own identity.

Szymon Pęczalski