Power Metal

  • Avantasia – Angel Of Babylon (2010)

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    Being the second release of Avantasia this 2010 (by one day of separation) “Angel Of Babylon” is much less bombastic and impressive than “The Wicked Symphony”, putting this release closer to “Scarecrow” because of it’s bigger hard rock influences. All the core musicians remain the same as on “The Wicked Symphony”, and the guest musicians/vocalists list is much shorter and a bit different than for the previously mentioned album.

    The first thing that came to our minds was that it was a great move that Avantasia left all these ‘weaker’ tracks in a separate release instead of putting a dent into the greatness of “The Wicked Symphony”. Having a greater Rock influence in these songs, the band looses a bit of its sonic power and goes slower than the first release, but this does not mean that the songs are bad at all; they are just ‘slower’.

  • Jon Oliva’s Pain – Festival (2010)

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    With the Spotlight shining on the Bay Area Trash Metal scene once more we have legendary bands releasing their finest releases to date like Exodus and Heathen. We also have other bands resurrecting like Forbidden, all this activity has made other bands like Kaos want to make another push to establish themselves as major players of the scene.

    Kaos has been around since the late 80’s releasing demo after demo until their first album saw the light of day in 2000 with “Vision Beyond”. After that the band signed to Relentless Records in order to release “Kaos Among Us”. Fast-forward to 2010 and we get the band’s latest offering with “The Pits Of Existence”, an album that clearly captures the old-school feeling and it’s marked to push Kaos into the spot light.

  • Arryan Path – Terra Incognita (2010)

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    Arryan Path is the second band we review from Cyprus this week and this one is a way better than the last one we did. The band plays Epic Power Metal with some hints of Middle Eastern influences like Orphaned Land does.

    “Terra Incognita” is the band’s second release, and it’s a pretty solid one. This album comes to us as a surprise, especially after the last 10 Power Metal albums we have received sound exactly the same. Arryan Path has a very unique feeling to their music and this is what makes them stand out from the rest.

  • Silent Fall – Otherwise (2010)

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    Hailing from France we have Silent Fall, a band that recently changed their name from Winterland and play a mean combination of Melodic Power/Heavy Metal. In the same vein as compatriots Adagio, the band specializes in bombastic melodies filled with intricate guitar and keyboard arrangements.

    The big name Japanese band called Versailles is the first comparison that comes to mind once we started listening to “Otherwise” the band’s first full-length release. While Silent Fall is less theatrical than Versailles, the vocal sound and the overall song structure is very similar. And if you know who Versailles is, you know that a comparison to them should not be taken lightly.

  • Gamma Ray – To The Metal! (2010)

    “To The Metal!” marks the band’s 10th full length release in over 21 years of existence of Gamma Ray. So far the band’s journey has been very solid, filled with epic releases like “Land Of The Free” and “Somewhere Out in Space”. This new album, while pretty solid, is not near the quality of those releases.

    With ten songs and around 50 minutes of music, these Germans show that they still have what it takes to create a good release. The album feels a bit disconnected at some times and half the songs are short from memorable, but still very good compared to other bands in the genre.

  • Catamenia – Cavalcade (2010)

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    Back in the day Catamenia used to play Melodic Black Metal and was considered just another band in the bunch. We have slowly seen how this band has been evolving into a more complex beast and it has been shedding its skin release after release until now.

    “Cavalcade” shows a finally mature band that plays a very interesting sounding ‘Blackened’ Power Metal. You still get the Black Metal shrieks, however the music structure is very Power Metal like, and its brilliant. The band finally polished its sound and after interesting releases we finally get a great one.

  • Winters Verge – Tales Of Tragedy (2010)

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    We don’t get to review too many bands from Cyprus and Winters Verge creates a great first impression with their third full-length album “Tales Of Tragedy”. The band manages to deliver a fine album filled with amazing Power Metal songs that will surely grab the attention of any fans of the genre.

    Not being a huge fan of Power Metal and being impressed with an album of this genre has to mean that the album is very good. “Tales Of Tragedy” by far exceeded any expectations I had about it when I read the press sheet. Featuring 11 tracks of bombastic Power Metal clocking around 55 minutes, this is one release that you can’t afford to miss.

  • Sacred Steel – Carnage Of Victory (2009)

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    Not being a big fan of Power Metal, I find it hard reviewing albums of this genre, because most of them sound exactly like each other. Sacred Steel’s “Carnage Of Victory” is one of them, while the music and vocals are not bad, but it’s just something I’ve listened to before.

    “Carnage Of Victory” provides us with 11 tracks of very decent Power Metal, I must say that not every Power Metal band I’ve reviewed has the quality that Sacred Steel has. The band on their 7th studio album delivers a very solid recording and should not be ignored by fans of the genre, for non-believers of Power Metal it’s just another album that sounds the same.

  • While Heaven Wept – Vast Oceans Lachrymose (2009)

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    While Heaven Wept is one of my favorite American bands since their Epic/Power Doom Metal is very different than other bands out there, and “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” is a worthy follow up to “Of Empires Forlorn”.

    However “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” sounds much more like the continuation of “Of Empires Forlorn” since they both have plenty of similarities in their sound. If you like the band’s previous album then you will love this new one, but if you did not then this is the problem here, the band shows almost no musical evolution between them.

  • Wilde Starr – Arrival (2009)

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    Wilde Starr hails from Alameda, California, and the band’s name is taken from the two members last names: London Wilde (vocals and keyboards) and Dave Starr (Guitars and Bass). The band’s sound can easily be compared to Doro with some hints of After Forever.

    Featuring over 55 minutes of music “Arrival” is one of the most effective releases I’ve heard this year, and I mean effective in a sense that no minute is wasted in establishing the band into one of the best of the genre. All songs are very well written and are diverse enough to not get bored, but feature elements in common giving the band their signature sound.

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