Now within the fourth installment of the
Metalium saga, for which the namesake German quartet have built themselves around;
Metalium once again come forth with yet another stronghold of power metal record brought forth with operatic elements and conceptual connotations with the latest opus, Chapter Four: As One.
Continuing from the last release
Hero Nation: Chapter Three,
As One adds yet a new element to the concept, the Metaliana, the female counterpart and polar opposite of the main character, the Metalian, continuing the deep mystical concept of the storyline, only to be equally seamed by the music represented within these twelve new cuts.
Musically speaking,
Metalium's machine gun paced in-your-face tempos and blazing guitar arpeggios are present within this record, having kept the band on staying on a consistent pace throughout their four records, and just like on the predecessor,
Hero Nation, Don Airey comes back to add his keyboard mastery to the record making for yet another solid element to be added to the sound, bringing his arsenal of analog keyboards to the table, with fat sounds that stick out more than just your average fake orchestration..
In a word, all the songs are complete with sonic energy, whether you look at the opening bassline that punches the intro of
"Find Out," and its neo-classical metal jam session of sorts that stage the aggressive cut; the sub operatic structure of
"Athena"; or the straight forward power metal cuts like
"Screaming in Darkness" and
"Power Strikes the Earth," all the elements are there to make
As One go beyond your run of the mill power metal, without going too much into symphonic territories, but yet keeping a tight progressive structure found within the complexity of the record.
The cut on the record that really stands out, is the twelve minute opus
"Illuminated," a dark late Period Sabbath-meets-Queensryche-meets-Early
Fates Warning vibe, brought forth with churning thick guitar riffs, Airey's Atmospheric keyboard stance, and a more breathy and emotional vocal approach, staying in a lower tempo than many of the other cuts on this record, standing perfectly within the
"Meaning of Light" intro and outro.
The sound is reminiscent to early
Stratovarius (minus harpsichord) and Gamma Ray, with the vibe of Priest and Maiden brought forth, all blended to create
Metalium's sound, which includes the dog whistle falsetto of Henning Basse, the discrete guitar work of Matthias Lange, the grinding bass of Lars Ratz, and the rapid skin pounding of Michael Ehre, making for the perfect combination for this group.
As One marks upon itself with the bands strong basis for a more up front sound, complimented by the records tight production, capturing perfect sonics of the instrumentation, making it easier to crank up, and hard to turn down, again standing out as one phenomenal record continuing the
Metalium saga, for both the band and concept. The CD includes enhanced material such as videos and other interactive goodies.
Written by
Hashman Monday, March 15, 2004
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