Here is the fourth installment from Nikolo Kotev's
Brazen Abbot, complete with the "musicianship/songwriting first" aspect, creating a modern but yet traditional Metal record that fits within the realm of the pop stratosphere emphasizing the guitar work and the songs to material relevant to a more edgier hard rock sound.
Though the record is heavy with Kotev's axework and arrangements, it seems to play more toward what
AOR rock would sound like if it was floating at the top of the mainstream at this point in time, so basically it is the mixture of Metal and pop done in the right sense, rather than any cheesy connotations put on this record.
The songs on "Guilty as Sin" are great, complimented by Kotev's musicianship, aligned with the vocal prowess of
Joe Lynn Turner (Deep Purple, Malmsteen,
Rainbow, Hughes/Turner), Goran Edman (Talisman, John Norum), and
Jorn Lande (TNT, Masterplan), which helps to add diversity within the record, creating standing differences in many of the cuts found here.
There are heavy cuts such as the Turner fronted
"One Life to Live" and the dark emotional
"Eyes on the Horizon," which open the record up on the quick heavy note, other cuts like
"Slip Away," being less of a guitar improvised Malmsteen meets
Rainbow cut and the
"Highway Star" relevant
"Mr. Earthman," complete with a fast paced driving guitar riff that is complimented by the Hammond organ taking center stage. There are Ballads that are present, the Lite-Rock
"I'll be Free," the anthem-ish power ballad of
"Bring the Colors Home," and the dark and eased acoustic
"Eve."
"Guilty of Sin" for the most part is a stripped down Heavy Metal/Hard Rock record, it should not surprise anyone that the comparisons to any of the other past
Brazen Abbot records are there along with the sound of
Rainbow and Deep Purple, being that there is a lot of Hammond organ present throughout the record, not to mention the vibe of Malmsteen's Rising Force. Although there are some progressive elements to the dynamics, they are used sparingly, and "Guilty as Sin" is not really a concept record. Fans of Glenn Hughes' and
Joe Lynn Turner's solo material (minus the blues aspect) should enjoy this, overall it makes for a great record with very well played out guitar work complimenting the technical songwriting of Kotev.
Written by
Hashman Monday, October 6, 2003
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