Accept. Objection Overruled
This is one fierce piece of hard-hitting Metal with several blistering tracks. You can just sense the burning desire they had for getting the band back into action.

Allen/Lande. The Revenge
It's a good step behind the excellent debut with Wake Up Call as the only really brilliant track, the overall quality is nevertheless very high and you just can't deny either the crisp vocals or groovy guitar playing.

Dream Theater. Train Of Thought
A deep, heavy and mysterious mental ride. A strong and powerful disc with dynamic engineering of world class.

Dream Theater. Octavarium
Too many structures, too little soul and melody...An overall good album but miles away from what they are capable of...Eagerly awaiting Systematic Chaos.

Freak Kitchen. Freak Kitchen
Humour and Hard Rock melts naturally together in this mad guitar driven band with a thing for memorable refrains that you'll have a hard time getting out of your head.

Freedom Call. Eternity
A completely over the top and for the exact same reason amazing Power Metal album. It's ultra catchy and still has a heavy bite. The mid section of Eyes Of The World is so energetic and how can you not love the chorus of Ages Of Power.

Harem Scarem. Higher
The word catchy goes a long way to describe this stunning album. One fantastic track after another. I'm blasting Waited out on a regular basis.

Iced Earth. Overture Of The Wicked (Single)
The new track is fairly good but as with the "newborn" trilogy it suffers form a thin and flat production. The choirs are not really working out and I just miss the dark atmosphere and authentic feel of the original piece. Jon, please correct the production before sending the "first" part into the market.

Kamelot. Ghost Opera
A less epic and more direct path than The Black Halo. Unfortunately it doesn't contain the extremely high quality of the last range of Kamelot releases, it's simply missing the real killer cuts as Forever, The Haunting (Somewhere In Time) or Until Kingdom Come. With that said it's quality craftsmanship and high standard Metal all the way through.

Lake Of Tears. A Crimson Cosmos
Groovy and weird Progressive Metal with an undeniable unique touch. It's difficult to describe, but the mystery of this strange thing is enough to have me hypnotized.

Pain Of Salvation. BE
In the wake of the their latest work, not meeting my expectations by a long shot, I dug out this fascinating gem. The atmospheres still haunt and amaze me.

Manticora. The Black Circus Part 2 - Disclosure
The second ride is seldom as entertaining as the first one, that also goes for the second spin in the horror carrousel of The Black Circus, but it's still a wild and intense one.

Redemption. The Origins Of Ruin
Highly complex Progressive Metal with balls, performed by a band of immense capacity. I still prefer the absolute brilliant The Fullness Of Time based on its depth and melody. This one is also great but with almost too much focus on complex structures, which in some instances pushes the opportunity for more memorable inputs out in the shadows, the lyrics are fascinating though.
You can easily go out and buy this piece if you're into Progressive Metal; this band is one of the best things that have happened to the genre in years.

Rush. Snakes And Arrows
Superb production, excellent creativity and a wide range of really interesting songs.

Stan Bush. In This Life
Warm Melodic Rock with an emotional depth bound to make an impact. The wonderful I Can't Cry and the up-tempo rocker This Moment are excellent.

Vanden Plas. Christ O
Even though it's far behind their best work, there is something about it that makes me revisit it. The key backgrounds are spellbinding and a mystic mood fills the room when Andy opens his sensitive pipes.

U.D.O. Mastercutor
Calling AFM Records... for gods sake stop making these promos with the tracks cut short in both ends...it's impossible to get a precise feeling of the album with the utterly annoying aspect of the songs melting together.
Anyway the short man with the large voice is back in business and the new disc has all the elements you could expect.
A bit predictable and lacking the really exciting elements, but solid Heavy Metal.

Written by Tommy
Sunday, May 20, 2007