Moonlight Agony is a power metal act from Sweden. They popped up in 1999 but didn't get an album on the shelves until 2004 with "Echoes of a Nightmare". Straightaway they were nothing particularly special, just another power band taking up space and sharing the sounds of many that have come before. Comparisons to
Thunderstone and
Stratovarius ran wild and with good reason. These were some of their admitted influences, which are many and varied across the genre's scope, and they wear them proudly on their sleeves. The blueprints of these inspirations are easy to spot and dominate every song.
The severe growls and clean masculine performance on vocals is by David Akesson. He is an admirable cross between Russel Allen and Michael Vescera. The music is a triple blend between the symphonic sound of
Stratovarius, the harder rough edge and crazy manic double drumming of
Symphony X and the very basic roots of power metal, the
Helloween element. Crushing guitars from Kalle Landin and Rikard Petersson add urgency and force to the proceedings while the rhythm section wails away with wild abandon. Performances are well done,
"Silent Waters", overall sounds very crisp for not being a high profile release.
Some songs have an atmospheric, almost horror startled spookiness. The title track,
"Silent Waters" throws a curve at the normal double drum beat down. It battles boredom with an orchestrated intro and the inclusion of a female voice that's whispery and ghostly. A sweeping piece that puts gothic in power metal with no reservations.
A Victorian/goth feeling that cuts to the heart of the music.
"Through the Desert Storm" has drums that rain down like little pebbles of frozen hail. The pouncing vocal attack of deep voiced David is both seething and agonized, a nice twist to the usual high pitched performances that are laid down for this strain of music generally. He's both fierce and ferocious, a sweet fit to the music.
The rest is typical power metal in the spiritual form of the opener,
"Leaving Solitude". Uptempo brutal beatings with the drums and vocals that scream along with them. Its an unrepentant fast album and whips through like a dark speeding demon in
"Soulless" and the fascinatingly crushing
"The Blood Red Sails". The bitter bite of "
You Betrayed Me" leaves an impressionable mark as well. Dark, brooding and cracks through like a whip, leaving the blood red tattered striping marks behind. A hint that vengeance comes swift and perversely sweet.
The rest of the album mostly lacks the originality touch displayed by the two more atmospheric songs mentioned in this review,
"Desert" and the title showcase. A shame, because
Moonlight Agony really pulls it together when they are forging more unique territory instead of trying to pump out tributes to their heroes. Whether the similarities were intentional or not, they are there and in such abundance that it can't be ignored. This colours the album mundane, when the feeling is often hinted at, during those moments of experimentation, that these guys are capable of much more than what they have displayed.
All in all this is a worthy follow up to their debut, 2004's "Echoes of a Nightmare". Not particularly original by any means, but fans of
Stratovarius,
Symphony X,
Helloween, and
Sonata Arctica should especially enjoy this disc. Of course no one that packed that disc home expected anything mindblowing so they should be content with the content on this disc anyway.
Written by
Alanna Friday, March 30, 2007
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