So what the hell is Mr. Dougie
White up to these days? The man behind quick stints with
Rainbow and Malmsteen, a vocalist that has unfortunately paid a debt as "second fiddler" so to speak, to many phenomenal musicians; many of us want to know what he is up to.
Well at this point in time he has collaborated with Steen Mogensen (Royal Hunt), who also co-produced the record with
White to create melodic metal within perfect pitch of tradition copulated with all the usual mandatory elements to create an album driven by strong song songwriting and catchy riffs, letting the music speak for itself, rather than making this an all out "supergroup" collaboration type release, standing out on it's own.
Both
White and Mogensen bring the elements of their endeavors to the table, being less of a full blown complex aesthetic than Malmsteen or Royal Hunt; being more straightforward as far as the production values are concerned, with the equal balance of guitar versus keyboards, where the axework is placed out on center stage with the ivories playing the melodic pads and occasional solos; easily said, the sound of their other endeavors is clearly heard, but on their own terms.
Opening up with the
Rainbow meets Maiden-ish
"Welcome to Forever," churning out perfect melodic guitar lines, soloing from the Hammond organ, and spontaneous axework, making for the perfect song to open up a record, it's got the quick pace to get anyone in a good mood to rock. However,
Once Upon Our Yesterdays takes a u-turn for more darker pastures for most of the record which include cuts like
"When the Hammer Falls," now think of
Headless Cross and you will get the idea;
"Passion to Warfare," with it's sub avant-garde pizzicato orchestration to add the technical vibe, pushing the envelope on a progressive sound; the
Parallels era
Fates Warning sounding
"Hour of Doom," which includes a nice hammer on guitar intro, not to mention the emotional
"Once Upon Our Yesterdays," all making for good sub-dark melodies to churn a more mood driven atmosphere. The more rockin' moments include the
Rage for Order Queesryche reminiscent
"21st Century Man," hell, the bass intro might remind you of
"Jet City Woman," and the Celtic Metal experiment (yes, it is) titled
"The End of the World," complete with danceable rhythms and flying violin to create a cut that only these guys can do well.
All in all it's a great record, perfect for melodic metal fans, who dare not pass this up, but at the same time, you might have heard this style before, and in this case, it is done the right way by real metal musicians with no cheese factor present, keeping it up to par and beyond with the strong melodies present; just a little more complex and this could be considered progressive metal, but that is not what these were shooting for in this case.
Knowing that these guys might have other obligatory duties in regards to other projects, one can only hope that this is not the last we hear from these guys as Cornerstone.
Written by
Hashman Monday, March 15, 2004
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