‘Charismatic Leaders’ is the 3rd studio album & InsideOutMusic debut from Finland-based progressive metallers Wheel. Since forming in 2015, Wheel have swiftly grown from underdogs of Helsinki, Finland, to an international tour de force. The angular riffs, unforgettable melodies and adventurous scope of the trio’s 2019 debut, Moving Backwards, was instantly adored by fans of megastars from TOOL to Coheed & Cambria. Then, 2021 followup Resident Human received rave reviews from publications across the planet, praising its sonic evolution and bravely dystopian themes.
‘Charismatic Leaders’ was meticulously crafted to meet Wheel’s ever-heightening benchmarks, with songwriting dating as far back as 2020 and recording stretching from August to December 2023. “This is our heavy album,” Lascelles states. “For the people who like metal and are into Wheel music, this is the one for them. It’s not like we’ve become a caricature of the previous albums, but we’ve definitely moved in a more metal direction, and we wanted to make a metal album.” ‘Charismatic Leaders’ is destined to be looked back on as a manifesto that equally excited its listeners and made them think about the world around them.
