Search - Eidolon :: Nightmare World

A new axe grinder of metallic proportions emerges

maddman7820 | Indianapolis, Indiana | 08/02/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Well, it is obvious that the first person to review this title is not a metal fan and fails to appreciate the merit of this band and the impact they will surely stir within the metal community. Quite a shame, too, given that Eidolon dishes up much to offer the ear of the metal fanatic, and more importantly, gives rise to a shining new star for metaldom. That star is Glen Drover,on guitar, who provides one of the most stellar displays of crunch not heard in the power metal community since the likes of Dimebag on Vulgar Display of Power, or most recently, Metal Hero Jon Schafer of the mighty Iced Earth. From the galloping riffs of the chorus to the title track, all the way through to the 11 minute plus closer "Dreamscape", Drover hammers out some of the finest muscular, meat and potatoes, renewing the "fine art of shredding" riffage this side of the last disc Bobby Gustaffson recorded with Overkill! And I mean it. Just check out the steamrolling intro riffs of "Eye of illusion" or the monolithic chunks of "Fortress of red," two of the album's highlights which showcase a crunch highly influenced by King and Hanneman. On "Fortress", the prolific riffs cascade over mid-range vocal muscle and double bass thudding, reminiscent of the Hell Awaits and South of Heaven era Slayer, much like the brow beating Drover again dishes out at song's end of "Dreamscape." Now, don't mistake Eidolon for a Slayer clone, because while their overall sound at times explodes forth with the same ferociousness as the L.A. master's, they are predominately power metal. While occasionally straddling the fences of early 80's thrash, the speed is only turned up once in the middle of "eye of illusion." Herein lies my only gripe with "Nightmare World." I like traditional power metal as well as anyone, but Eidolon excells in the crunch department and they come off much more credible when they are in steamroller mode. In fact, while none of the songs on the major label debut are filler, some are strengthened single handedly by Drover's intense guitar tactics, like "Repulsion", with a fine solo break, and the break down in "Nocturn Aeternus", which otherwise is close to suffering from the usual power metal "cheese disease! " Overall, the rest of the band display sound competency with their instruments, and vocalist Brian Soulard will do, with his mighty mid range belting, but it is apparent that he is not in league with the Bruce's or the Rob's, or the Matthew Barlow's, but then how many front men are? Brian's lack of high range does not detract from the overall power of Eidolon, and anyway, an overly talented singer may take away from the true power of this ensemble, which is (surprise) the chops of Glen Drover. Overall, Eidolon has unleashed a mighty fine plate of renewed power metal that is played with talent and skill, and finished off with a great production (done by Drover also! ) which should appeal to fans who can't get enough of the likes of Iced Earth, Nevermore, Lefay, and the great ones like Slayer, Overkill, and Metal Church. Many great things can be expected to come from this bunch of up and comers in the new metal realm!"

Very heavy and aggressive heavy/power metal

Mr. S. J. Shuttlewood | England | 12/19/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This band are amazing, they have 5 full length albums out, but this is the only on on Amazon.com (ignore the others they are another artist).
the albums are:-
zero hour
seven spirits
nightmareworld (this one)
hallowed apparition
coma nation (the new and best)[...]goto [...]for more info.anyway back to the review!! this band brings to mind late judas priest, a bit of iced earth but arguably better than both. the singer is a power metal style one, but the music is heavy almost thrash at times. the production is very good with a very bludgenous guitar sound. superb album buy it now!!"

Good Power Metal

Power_Metal_Fan | N/A | 04/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well Eidolon sure are good musicians! If you like Power Metal a la Nevermore with a mix of Slayer, you'll love this. They remind me a bit of Angel Dust too but a little faster. I like the way they do the guitar riffs. Eidolon sometimes sounds Trashy, sometimes more Power, sometimes more Doomy, but the way they do it is plain awesome. At first it might sound too mixed up but after a couple of spins, everything gets pretty good! But if you like Happy Power Metal, stay away from this one, it's probly too heavy. Personnally, I appreciated it, but that's just me, I'm kinda opened when it comes to Power Metal.
If you wanna check out some songs, check out Lunar Mission, Noctem Aeternus, Eye of Illusion and the opener Nightmare World."