Last Played - August 2022!

Sorry for the delay on this article.  I've been dealing with a plugged ear canal, which makes listening to new music less than ideal.  (And the relentless heat isn't helping!)  Still, I was able to get to some new releases, like I promised.  Here's what I've been checking out lately!

Shield of Wings - Unfinished

While I've enjoyed plenty of symphonic power metal, I admit I haven't really dug much into the styles of more straight forward symphonic metal or even symphonic gothic metal.  So getting into this album is definitely a shift in expectations.  It's a solid piece of work, sitting between the likes of Epica and the Antti Martikainen stuff I've enjoyed, but I don't know I'm quite clicking with it.

Right off, the production is amazing.  Plenty of symphonic flourishes and orchestral layering, making these songs feel rich and cinematic.  There's also a strong folky influence to things, making the atmosphere feel almost otherworldly at times.  While I generally avoid bands that have harsh vocals for this blog, they don't come up often, and are used quite well, in my opinion, sometimes getting a few verses or harmonizing with the clean lead vocals.  I'm not sure if they're being done by the main singer Lara Mordian or by another member, but they add a nice layer of grit to the songs.

However, I do have some issues.  The songs feel a little disorganized, often shifting from one style to the other.  While that can make them feel very dramatic in some ways, I find it makes the album harder to really get a feel for.  Another thing is the lyrics.  Maybe they just wanted a more poetic style, full of symbolism and metaphor, but when you focus on them, they do come across as a bit of a word salad.  Still, there is plenty to recommend, especially for those who like great, orchestral atmosphere and a ton of cinematic bombast.  A few of the stand outs are "Native Colossus," "Mind of Myth," and "Sunfire Shower," which mixes in a bit of a power metal vibe on the chorus.  I may have to listen to this one a few more times to really wrap my head around the whole thing, though.

Alan Parsons - From the New World

As I've mentioned before, I thought The Secret would be Alan Parsons last album, given some of the lyrics on it, but here we are, with another solo album through Frontiers Records.  While the last album definitely sought to recreate the soft rock success of their mid-80s style, this one is a broader album, drawing upon the symphonic elements of early Project albums while still retaining the poppier side.

From the beginning, we definitely get a solid idea of what to expect with the opener "Fare Thee Well."  Starting with an arpeggio like "Sirius" before a big symphonic swell, and then into an atmospheric mood before picking up energy in the second half.  And the lyrics contain many references to older Project songs.  A decent, fan-service kind of song.  From there, the album carries on well, with "The Secret" and "Uroboros, the latter of which features Tommy Shaw on vocals.  It has a curious mix of spacy atmosphere and blues-rock riffing, making it a unique track on the album.  However, the middle of the album really sags in energy with a collection of some mediocre ballads.  "Obstacles" in particular feels like filler.  Fortunately, things pick up again with "You Are the Light" and "Halos."  The latter track starts very moody, but then has some fascinating synth layers that really build in interesting ways, making me think of the Project's instrumental tracks like "Mammagamma."  The album then ends on some peculiar covers.  First is a folky ballad from 1922 that uses the melody of Dvořák's 9th symphony.  According to Parsons, it was a favorite song of his father.  The other cover is "Be My Baby," a 60s pop song given a bit of a symphonic flair.  However, that opening percussion hook made me think of "Don't Answer Me" from Ammonia Avenue, so maybe Parsons is just referencing one of his influences for fun.  They're a strange pair that don't quite mesh with the rest of the album, though.

Overall, I do think this is an improvement over The Secret, though certainly not a return to form by any means.  The guest stars are used well-enough, but don't really transform the album, and Alan Parsons actually sings the lead vocals a few times, which is kind of different.  Still, I can see myself coming back to some of these tracks, especially "Fare Thee Well," "Uroboros," and "Halos."  Maybe the old engineer still has some gas left in the tank, after all.

New Horizon - Gate of the Gods

After stumbling across these guys back in November, they were on my list to check out at some point this year.  Featuring members of the AOR band H.E.A.T., they've pulled together for a power metal project and this is their debut album.  As it turns out, it's some pretty solid, melodic metal with some dramatic touches, very much in the vein of bands like Freedom Call and Twilightning.

While the intro track is some interesting electronic ambience, things kick into high gear with "We Unite" with melodic, percussive riffs and a wailing vocal line.  Much of this kind of energy is also found on tracks like "Cry for Freedom," "Stardust," and "Fearless."  The other style they have is more of a chugging, mid-tempo style, featured on "Stronger than Steel," and "The End of All."  The title track brings all this together at the end, featuring everything the band has to offer.  Erik Grönwall does a great job as the vocalist, soaring over all the riffs and melodies, which include some neat synths to add some lushness to the tracks.  As for the guitar solos, they bring in several guest musicians, including Sam Totman from DragonForce, and they remain pretty consistent in quality throughout the album.

They don't do anything unique, but they do it well, and there's enough variation to keep it from feeling repetitive.  The standouts for me were "Cry for Freedom," "Event Horizon," and "Fearless."  I wasn't blown away by the album, but I found it to be a good chunk of power metal fury with plenty of energy all the way through to the epic seven-minute final track.  It will be interesting to see if they continue this project and where they decide to go with it.

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I'm still planning on sticking to my goal of three articles a month, so expect a New Video posts at the end of August.  Hopefully, by then, my ear will be better and I'll feel like listening to more stuff.  I know there are still plenty of new albums on my list that I want to get to for this year, as well as finding things for my anniversary articles.  We'll see what I get around to.  Until then, rock on! \m/

New Videos - May 2022!

End of the month means it's time for another batch of videos!  I think there's a lot of great stuff here, mostly metal, but there is some rock in there for good measure.  There's certainly a lot of stuff to look forward to this year, that's for sure.  Check these out and see if you agree!

Another champion of the melodic prog metal style, Seventh Wonder's new single is pretty standard for the style, but it works!  Tommy's vocals remain expressive, the band show some dynamic playing and songwriting, and it's even a bit catchy!  I'll have to find some time to catch up on more of their stuff!

Yet another track from new symphonic metal band Shield of Wings.  I really like their sense of scale with their songs, making me think of Antti Martikainen in a way.  They also use some harsh vocals (from the keyboardist, I believe), but they're mostly in the background to add a bit of extra spice, which is interesting.

I featured this band back in November, and it's taken this long to get to their next song, and I enjoy this one as much as the last one.  I got Twilightning vibes from this track this time, but that's a good thing.  It just means that this is some solid power metal I'll need to take the time to check out.

After a three year gap, Tobias Sammet is back with another Avantasia album, and for the lead single, he's tapped into the incredible Ralf Scheepers to join him on vocals.  While there are some of the typical symphonic flourishes one expects, this song mostly stays in the heavy/power style that fits Scheepers like a glove.

After some controversy and a new singer, GloryHammer carries on their quest to be the cheesiest power metal band in the world.  While they may still have their tongues becoming permanent residents in their cheeks, I can't deny they still have a knack for some catchy melodies and epic vocals, and newcomer Sozos Michael seems to be fitting right in.

While GloryHammer continue crafting their own stories, Blind Guardian has once again found another novel to inspire new epic tunes of their own.  Building off of the book American Gods by Neil Gaiman, Kürsch and company have crafted yet another bomastic epic, with some pretty solid guitar solos.  Perhaps nothing new, but when they do it this well, I can't complain.

Good heavens, Moonlight Haze has been prolific.  Once again, they're back with their catchy symphonic metal, featuring quite the flurry of notes to kick this one off.  This really does have a lot of good, uplifting energy, with some great singing by Chiara Tricarico.

Harry Hess is back with more First Signal, and this track has some great rocking energy.  Great use of layers for something really driving and anthemic.  I know AOR can get a little samey, but I think this is a great example of how to make this genre really stand out. 

New Videos - April 2022!

I've finally started getting caught up on some of these new songs and videos.  There's been some pretty interesting stuff from bands both old and new.  Turn up the volume and check these out!

Starting off with some pretty solid symphonic metal.  While it's not earth-shaking by any means, it's well-played and well-balanced, finding the line between bombastic and catchy.  This is a new band, too, so I'll have to keep an eye out for more from them.

So I guess Jani is doing a solo album this time, with a bunch of singers (including his former Sonata Arctica bandmate Tony Kakko).  However, this single is with Timo Kotipelto, the singer from Stratovarius and Jani's own Cain's Offering, so this track is right up my alley, as I love both those bands.  Nice, bombastic symphonic power metal.

I admit I haven't kept up at all with Def Leppard's recent releases, but after checking this single, I'm kind of impressed!  I don't know if the rest of their new album sounds like this, but this has a rather dark swagger to it without really getting away from the arena-friendly rock sound the band is known for.  

Another classic 80s band whose modern material I've completely overlooked.  I knew they were working on the album, and I've heard a few singles, but this one really stands out.  Obviously, it reminds of "The Zoo," with its stompy, mid-tempo groove, but it has more of a spacy vibe that gives it a different feel.  Not bad for some old rockers!

Speaking of classic bands, here's a prog rock band from Sweden that's been around since the 70s, but I had never heard of them before.  This new track certainly has a lot of the trademarks of third-wave prog: laidback vibe with plenty of jazz-fusion groove.  I guess they have singers, but this one is instrumental.  Not a bad bit of noodling, really.

Despite all these older bands, there's always new ones to check out as well.  Fallen Sanctuary seems to be going for a classic power metal sound, making me think of early Sonata Arctica.  High speed riffing and soaring vocals are always an easy pick for me, but these guys seem to have some promise, I think.

Let's finish with one more piece of power metal from another new band.  This one is interesting, as it has some very symphonic flourishes, but the songwriting feels more like Helloween or Gamma Ray.  Still, it's some pretty epic, melodic stuff, with a great gruff singer in Ilkka Koski.