First things first; Wizard is most definitely inspired by Manowar. That said, there's really no comparison of the two. Manowar is one of the best metal acts in the world. Or at least they used to be. That is if you believe Wizard. This album supposedly continues where The Sign Of The Hammer by Manowar left. A statement with balls. Odin being the heir to the throne instead of a band that only offers MTV-compatible stuff these days, is also one of the statements in the promo material following this CD. One thing is words, but at the end of the day it all comes down to just how good your music is. Period!

At first I had my doubts about this band. With song titles like Hammer, Bow, Axe and Sword, from a previous album, and titles on this album like Dark God and The Powergod, clearly show their source of inspiration, and made me roll my eyes. But after listening to the album just a couple of times, the music captured me. And that's all that really matters.

The album has a lot of energy, and one of my favourite things, lots and lots of melody. Easy to remember choruses and straight forward metal, makes this album stand out. The production being several light-years ahead of their previous releases helps a lot on the album as a whole.

The thing I like about the vocals is the fact that the high-pitch voice is toned down a lot, which actually suits the music. Sven D'Anna has a great voice, and the occasional high-pitch just gives that extra something.

All instruments are cool, but never really gets to a point where you go: "Bloody Hell!". To be fair they did two times, but for another reason. First time was in Lokis Punishment. There's a middle part that sound very much like Burn, by the mighty King Diamond. The vocals in the same part are resembling Kings voice somewhat. Coincidence? I think not. Tribute could be the thing. The second eye opener I stumbled upon was in The Powergod. They play fast. Very fast!

But to get back to the issue, then the guitars are standard power metal guitars. Nothing new under the sun here. The same goes for the bass and drums. But all are played with an intensity and authority that might suggest that we haven't seen the last thing from these boys.

All in all, with Odin Wizard have made a good clean power metal record that doesn't set new standards, but it will not disappoint you.

Favourite Tracks: Lokis Punishment, Thor's Hammer, The Powergod

Written by Ulrick
Thursday, May 1, 2003
Show all reviews by Ulrick

Ratings

Ulrick: 7/10

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