Heavy Metal Is Back!!!
Jpgr869 | St. Louis, MO United States | 04/21/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Blistering!!! That is one word to sum up this phenomenal effort by this incredibly talented band. This CD hasn't left my player since the day I bought it. It's that good. What does the band sound like? You'll hear the usual comparisons to Queensryche due to singer, Michael Degrena's, Tate-like vocals, and I dare say some of the guitar work borders on being Malmsteen-esque, but truthfully, this band has crafted its own unique blend of melodic power that stands on its own. Just pick up this disk, pop it in, and hang on for the ride because the first track, "Single Shot" takes off running. My favorite tracks on the disk are Tracks #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9 and #10. Oh yeah, and there are only ten tracks, so what does that tell you? If you're a fan of intricate power riffing, a balls to the wall drum sound, and a singer who actually sings instead of barking like a distorted, amped-up dog, this band and this disk are for you. At long last "Order" has been restored to the barren Heavy Metal landscape!"
Solid, crunchy metal.
Robert Gamble | Falmouth, MA United States | 08/06/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This CD seems almost a mix of Iced Earth and old school metal. The singer has often been compared to Geoff Tate (Queensryche) but I don't really see it. He does have a bit of the same rich lows and higher pitched vocals, but normally there's a slight rasp to his voice, and he uses a lot of growls which don't reach the same level as death metal growls, but are a nice counterpoint at times.
The guitars are heavy, rhythmic and generally mid paced. The mixing and instruments don't make the sound one of 'heavily polished', instead the music comes across with a bit of a rasp, just like the singer. To me, this works quite nicely.
I enjoy this one quite a bit, and recommend it to metal fans looking for something a bit off the beaten path."
Boy they rock hard but whoaaa do they ever need a new singer
W. freeman | fairmont, wv | 04/29/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Wel i'm from wv and i played drums for the band Byzantine, if anyone knows them. I think we actually played a show with these guys, they are from PA and i seem to remember standing around the club and hearing them thinking wow they arent bad. First off they are in the Iced Earth meets Iron Maiden meets QR vein with even some old thrash elements on board. The music is awesome and kudos to the guitarist who got my attention from the song samples on here, he's KILLER. The rest of the band are good but the singer has GOT to go, no disrespect to him but i sing and i know i could do a much better job, sorry. He just struggles to much like he grasping at ranges he can't handle, he also sounds like a very large guy, but i've never seen him. All the songs are well written and very raw, with great breaks and solos, but on songs like Single Shot and Lord Of The Nine the vocalist really just has some literal awful moments trying to keep it in key. Even though these guys will never be as big as they'd like or people think they should be, they are very talented. I actually would love to take the guitarist and start up a new heavier band with him, yes he's that good, very on par with Petrucci, Yngwie with a mixer of his own style. So if you like powermetal with a raw edge than you'll love this. Just plug your ears on certain parts of high range singing, also i must mention its funny that on some slower songs he sounds JUST like Zack Wylde ODD huh. Have Fun."
Track Listings (10) - Disc #1