• Posted By: Dark Emperor
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Artas – Riotology (2011)

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Featuring a very diverse sound, Napalm Records brings us Artas second full-length release “Riotology”. In this release the band combines everything from Thrash, Death, Groove, and Melodic Modern Metal to create a very diverse sound that while at times it works wonderfully, other times it sounds too chaotic and disconnected.

Having a more concise sound than on their debut album “The Healing”, Artas sometimes seems to jump the gap between ‘real metal’ and Metalcore/core stuff. This will make some listeners fly away from the band, but we recommend you stick around since there are parts and songs good enough to be worth suffering through the ‘core’ stuff for a bit.

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Stratovarius – Elysium (2011)

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After the somewhat uninspired “Polaris”, Stratovarius delivers one of their best albums in their whole career. With “Elysium” the band takes their sound to a whole new level, combining traditional elements of their earlier sound with some progressive elements and some amazing vocal arrangements, making this album a great listening experience for fans of the bands and the genre.

Featuring an excellent production, “Elysium” brings back memories from the past releases of the band (“Infinite” and “Elements” mainly) with a very dynamic and modern sound thanks to the skills of ‘newer’ members Matias Kupiainen and Lauri Porra. We now have some great bass guitar lines provided by Porra, and shredding wizardry courtesy of Kupianien that will make you forget that Timo Tolkki is no longer in the band.

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Sirenia – The Enigma of Life (2011)

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Gothic Metal’s prodigal son Morten Veland returns with yet another great release from his main band Sirenia in the shape of “The Enigma of Life”. As you can imagine, this release is nothing short of bombastic in terms of musical and vocal arrangements. All fans of the band will surely be please in how the band is shaping up and is continuing and improving on their sound since “The 13th Floor”.

Leading the band’s impressive sound we have Ailyn’s angelic vocals that transfer great emotion and sound as good as ever. Having composed and played all instruments in this release Morten knows exactly what fans like and delivers an album that features a somewhat improved Sirenia sound that will haunt your play lists since the moment you start listening to this record.

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Battlelore – Doombound (2011)

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Like a fine wine, Battlelore has been graciously aging with time and with “Doombound” they achieve a very solid release and refinement of their signature Epic Metal sound. As one of the most awaited releases of 2011, “Doombound” has everything a fan of the genre needs: brilliant female and male vocals, epic melodies with elaborate arrangements, and powerful guitar riffing.

While not terribly revolutionary, Battlelore has been refining their style with every album they have produced and with “Doombound” they are close to achieving. As a concept album “Doombound” takes the listeners into a magical fantasy journey, something that the band has made part of their concept (and live show) since their conception and it’s one of their best traits.

  • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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Doro – Fear No Evil (2009) – Ultimate Collector’s Edition

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For the super fans of Doro, AFM Record put together a very special ultimate collector’s edition of the metal queen’s “Fear No Evil” release. Here we will talk about the extra goodies presented in this lush collector’s edition boxed set, but if you want the full review of the album you can read it here.

In the first CD we get the full “Fear No Evil” and two new bonus tracks: “All we are (2007)” and “On My Own” as well as new cover art. The second CD has the “Celebrate” EP that includes 3 different versions of the song, the ‘original’ version, the version with Biff Byford (very good in our opinion) and the full Metal female version which includes some of the best female metal vocalists in the scene. This song it-self is what makes the EP worth having for any female-fronted Metal fan in the world. The remaining two songs are “The Night of the Warlock” and “Rescue Me”.

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