I am thrilled with finally getting the first two
Virgin Steele releases on CD, Guardians Of The Flame being
Virgin Steele's sophomore album originally released back in 1983 and now available in a nicely shined up re-mastered edition featuring quality bonus material.
Guardians Of The Flame has a more epic and symphonic edge to it than the debut, still keeping the rocking and "in your face" attitude intact.
The album couldn't have had a better opener than the fantastic and ultra melodic
Don't Say Goodbye (Tonight), its forceful drive being truly magical. David's emotional and extremely varied vocals sounds phenomenal and adds a very dramatic element.
A more simple and not that exciting approach is gone for with
Burn The Sun, the lead guitar work is quite interesting but the chorus lacks some nerve.
Life Of Crime has a cool massive bass fundament that helps along in creating a successful, melodic and very grooving track.
With epic key orchestrations
The Redeemer enters the stage with a certain triumphant feeling to it, grand and very powerful. The fantastic breaking guitar riff takes the song onto a new and faster level featuring energetic drumming and tight bass lines. The ingenious key solo is another spectacular element and overall this song just works out brilliantly.
The harmonious and symphonic instrumental intermission
Birth Through Fire fits in well before things continue with
Guardians Of The Flame, a mid-tempo creation with a more direct and rocking edge to it. The extensive and thrilling guitar solo and the dramatic keys are highlights in pretty diverse composition.
Metal City has an uncomplicated structure that also becomes a bit monotone, the energy is there but the catchiness is lacking.
Hell Or High Water suffers from the same lack of something to keep you focused all the way; the guitar solo is a cool breaking element though.
The hard rocking
Go All The Way wins by its easygoing nature and thrilling guitar leads, nothing extraordinary but a solid creation.
Just as fantastic as the album opened, so it closes, again another genius creation from David. The soft piano tunes and expressive vocals set the main stage for
A Cry In The Night to unfold its captivating magic. This is in fact quite simple stuff but it just has so much feeling, especially the driving chorus has an infectious tendency to stick to your head for a long time.
A musical summery:
David's voice sounds fantastic; full of emotion and power, and the keyboard arrangements give the songs more life and a complex edge. The drums are well played, and together with the pounding bass they make a vigorous setting for the solid guitar to unfold its hard riffs and melodic leads.
Some lyrics are very well written and some quite plain in style, the emotional love lyrics have a cool profound style and the epics about ancient magic and brave adventures also have their own charm.
The bonus tracks are pretty cool too, featuring an interesting interview; the rating is nevertheless based on the original 10 tracks.
When comparing it to the debut this one has a more mature and richer sound, a nice depth and a good balance.
A varied and very solid album containing some essential
Virgin Steele classics.
Written by
Tommy Saturday, August 28, 2004
Show all reviews by TommyRatingsTommy: 7.5/10Members: No members have rated this album yet.
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