A.B.E.A. - DREAM OF SUICIDE - DEMO CD (2004) ATLANTIDA - PAINTED REALITY (2004) ANGELO PERLEPES' MISTERY - DESTINY (2004) ALTARIA - DIVINITY (2004) ART OF FEAR - MASTER OF PAIN (2004) ANUBIS GATE - PURIFICATION (2004) ARACHNICA - BLACK ATTACK - CD-SINGLE (2003) AT VANCE
- THE EVIL IN YOU (2003) AT VANCE - ONLY HUMAN (2002) AT VANCE - DRAGONCHASER (2001) AVANTASIA
- THE METAL OPERA PART II (2002) AVANTASIA - THE METAL OPERA PART I (2001) AXENSTAR - PROMO 2001 - DEMO CD ASKA - AVENGER (2000) ADAGIO - SANCTUS IGNIS (2001) AVALANCH - EL ÁNGEL CAÍDO (2002) AZEROTH - AZEROTH (2000)
The talented Turkish band A.B.E.A. was formed in 2000
by Gökhan (bass) and Özgen (guitars). When Ufuk (drums) joined them some time later they
started to play instrumental songs. That same period, they found the keyboard player Evren
and their aim changed.They decided to write songs with lyrics and choose Gökhan as vocalist.
When Orçun (bass) joined them their line-up was completed.They recorded 2 instrumental power
metal songs but this record wasn't released officially. But their new songs with vocals
changed their style to a modern sound.On the A.B.E.A.'s first demo-cd are 4 very interesting
progressive/symphonic metal songs. Gökhan is a very good vocalist for this music style and
there are also excellent keyboard/guitar parts from Evren and Özgen. Stylewise they play
prog-sympho metal in the vein of Shadow Gallery, Dream Theater, Vanden Plas, Arena and
Symphony X. So prog-sympho with a lot of variety, excellent vocals & musicianship and a
lot of melody. When they can release a CD with the same song quality as on their demo,
they could be the next revelation in the classic prog-sympho rock/metal scene!
E-mail (Review by: Ronny Elst)
This Brazilian Progressive Metal band was formerly known as
Atlantis. Under this moniker they released in 2000 the excellent 5 track EP "New Frontiers".
Now they are back with a new bandname and a new 10 track album, called "Painted Reality".
On this new album are 4 remastered songs of their EP and 6 new songs. Musically nothing
changed that much since "New Frontiers". Atlantida is still a very young, talented progressive
metal band. They play a mix of traditional prog metal bands like Dream Theater, Vanden Plas,
Empty Tremor, Enchant and more complex bands like Power Of Omens, Sieges Even, Zero Hour and
Watchtower. Some songs sound quite heavy especially thanks to the vocals of Luiz Siren,
but most of the time their songs have a nice melodic twist thanks to the keyboard and guitar
solos/parts. The proof that the guys of Atlantida are very well skilled musicians is the
instrumental title track, a great instrumental metal piece, combined with elements from
other styles too. There are also some guests on this album, of which Kiko Loureiro (Angra)
is the most known. "Painted Reality" is for me one of the best progressive metal albums
which are released in 2004! So I hope that it will be released in Europe too.
Homepage (Review by: Ronny Elst)
"Destiny" is the fourth album of the one and only neo-classical metal band from Greece, Angelo Perlepes' Mystery. This band already exist since 1986 and had several line-up changes during the years. But they never changed their music style. Founder and guitar maestro Angelo Perlepes was and is still a great admirer of guitarists like Ritchie Blackmore and Yngwie J. Malmsteen. Angelo's compositions are still a mix of classic hard rock bands like Rainbow, Deep Purple, Dio and neo-classical bands like Rising Force and Concerto Moon. Mid and up-tempo hard rock/metal songs with a lot of attention for great neo-classical guitar solos. On their new album is this time only one superb instrumental track, "Weird", which is divided into 3 parts (allegro, adagio and presto). Vocalist Dimitris Sirgiannis is not in the same league as vocalists like Turner, Hughes, Dio but is best comparable with Tako Ozaki and Takashi Inoue (ex(?)- Concerto Moon vocalists). "Destiny" is once again a great neo-classsical heavy rock/metal release from Angelo Perlepes' Mystery!
Homepage: www.angeloperlepesmystery.com /
E-mail: info@angeloperlepesmystery.com.
(Review by: Ronny Elst)
This new CD from Altaria is a masterpiece, it's the best album that has come out so far this year. The whole through this album is full of great melodies. Try to hear "Unchain The Rain", "Prophet Of Pestilence" and "Final Warning" and you will understand why this great
band is so fantastic. The music is a bit like Sonata Arctica but that is not so strange because the guitarist is playing in Sonata Arctica as his main band. This album will turn around in my CD player for a long long time thats for sure. The bonus number on this CD is an Accept classic, "Balls To The Wall" and it sticks very near to the original. People in the heavy world: go out and buy this fantastic album. (Review: Ole Bach)
With their 2001 mini CD "Pride Of Creation", Austrian band
Art Of Fear made a big step forward. This was mainly thanks to the arrival of new vocalist
Thomas Cassan. Now they have finally released their first full length album, called "Master Of Pain".
Musically nothing has changed that much since "Pride Of Creation". Art Of Fear still plays
an interesting mix of heavy, power, thrash and speed metal. Their main influence that I hear
come from the US Power/Thrash Metal scene (Metal Church, Testament, Exodus, Agent Steel...),
mixed with elements from the European metal scene (Accept, Judas Priest, Grave Digger...).
With Thomas, the band has got an excellent vocalist, which reminds me of David Wayne
(Metal Church) and Udo. Sadly enough, the band still hasn't found a record deal! I can't see why,
because many less good bands get signed! Everybody who likes 80's influenced real metal should
give them a chance and buy their CD! Homepage: www.art-of-fear.com /
E-mail: artoffear@hotmail.com.
(Review by: Ronny Elst)
This is a masterpiece from the band Anubis Gate from Denmark. I can't remember a band with
such a special sound and atmosphere. From time to time they can sound like Queensryche,
Crimson Glory and Savatage but still they has their own way to get the tunes out.
The best numbers are the opening track "Hall Of Two Truths", "Downward Spiral" and "Kingdom Of Duat".
The members in the band have been into bands like Invocator, Prophets Of Doom and Geronimo
and the producer Jakob Hansen have done a fantastic work with this album, and Locomotive Records
have yet another great band into their ranks. It must be 8,5 out of 10.
(Review by: Ole Bach)
This Belgian band was first called Engine, but many things
changed when a new member, Dennis Burkas, joined them. Musically nothing changed that much,
but with Dennis everything was done more professional. When their new line-up, ArachnicA soon
recorded their first CD-single, called "Black Attack". This CD-single is released as a digipack
edition, together with a separate (free) bonus DVD of the "Black Attack" videoclip.
Musically the song "Black Attack" is very much influenced by Metallica (fortunately the "old"
Metallica!). So "Black Attack" is a straight ahead 80's metal(lica) song, with even a
Kirk Hammett influenced guitar solo. What I heard, is that the other ArachnicA songs have
a lot of variety, but mainly their music is 80's/90's inspired heavy metal, but with an up
to date fresh sound. Soon their new CD-single "Legend Of The Mummy" will be released and
there are also plans to release an album later this year.
Homepage: www.arachnica.net /
E-mail: arachnica@pandora.be.
(Review by: Ronny Elst)
Germany's At Vance continues the pattern of releasing an album every year. Their fifth effort, follow-up to the great "Only Human" album, lands with expectations set obviously quite high. "The Evil In You" delivers pretty
much the same distinctive, identifiable sound which has made them popular among fans
of the genre, excellent Melodic Power Metal with a neoclassical feel that might remind the
listener a bit of Yngwie Malmsteen. This album is a bit straighter sounding
and slightly heavier than previous material, basically it's all "heavy" stuff, a good mix
of fast and mid-paced songs, with only one ballad on the album as well as one
short instrumental track (a cover of a classical piece, Niccolo Paganini's Caprice No. 16).
New singer Mats Levén (who sang for such big names as Treat, Abstrakt Algebra, Swedish Erotica and Yngwie Malmsteen) does a really good job on
vocals since his voice sounds perfect for this type of music, powerful, melodic and clear.
Sure Oliver Hartmann is one of the best singers in metal these days, and
I was very upset when I heard he was no longer in At Vance, I thought their music wouldn't be the same without him... but after listening to Mats' excellent performance
on this album, I've totally changed my mind... much to my surprise, Oliver isn't missed at all!!
Now on to the songs. The truth is, we're talking about a fantastic
48 minutes-long piece of music, from the first to the last note. Several tracks stand out,
like the fast opener "Fallen Angel", "The Evil In You", "Stronger Than You Think",
"One Million Miles", the mentioned power-ballad "Shining Star" or the speedy, double-bass "Streets Of My Dreams".
Of course, as you would expect, the production is excellent and the musicianship is impeccable,
Olaf Lenk's great guitar work standing out. If you enjoyed their previous efforts,
this new one won't let you down at all. BTW, try to get the limited double CD, which
includes new and unreleased songs with former singer Oliver Hartmann and video.
(Review by: Marina)
At Vance return with their new album "Only Human" once again offering a huge
selection of Neoclassical Metal tracks in the vein of Stratovarius/Malmsteen,
fast double-bass-driven Power Metal tunes, a couple of mid-tempo tracks and a ballad,
featuring an impressive singer (Oliver Hartmann) and amazing guitar playing courtesy of Olaf Lenk. With
tracks such as the fast title track "Only Human" (with an instantly memorable chorus), the epic
"Fly To The Rainbow", the mid-tempo "Time" or the fast and
majestic "Witches Dance" (love the guitars on this one), At Vance releases the perfect album
with the perfect hits. By the way, the CD also includes two instrumental
tracks, Vivaldi's "Four Seasons/Spring" and Bach's "Solfeggietto" and Rainbow's
"I Surrender" as bonus track. Melodic, more aggressive and heavy, the compositions are really
in the At Vance way and if you liked the 3 previous albums, you won't be disappointed
by "Only Human". It will also appeal to the shredders out there with Olaf's playing, hehe.
The album was mixed by Sascha Paeth and the production is, of course, very very good.
(Review by: Marina)
This is the new album of the band and their third so far. The main influence is still Yngwie
Malmsteen and the influences from classical music are still here as well. Musically, it does
not bear a lot of differences from the previous albums, but I must say that it's more mature and
the songwriting has been improved. Classically oriented, the guitar is dominating their sound
as usual. There's not a single stinker here, but I would especially like to mention the title track
"Dragonchaser", "Ages of Glory", "Too Late" & "Two Kings". The first mentioned is a fast one, similar
to speed-metal, featuring pretty cool riffs that I love. At times it can be very speedy like Stratovarius ("Too Late"), then at
times it slows down to slow power ballads ("My Bleeding Heart") and mid tempo songs ("Heaven Can Wait"). When they play fast they are better, but the ballads are
also good. Of course, there's an excellent 8 minute long cover of Beethoven's "5th
Symphony" and an interesting heavy metal version of Abba's "The Winner Takes It
All". I'm sure Olaf Lenk will become the new guitar god very soon, 'cause he sounds better with every album and Oliver Hartmann is a very talented singer who gives the band a
touch of class and shows that's one of the best metal vocalists currently. The production is
good, giving each instrument some space to shine but at the
same time making strong emphasis on the guitar... well, I think the voice of Oliver
should have been little higher mixed, but the sound in general is above average. Recommended.
(Review by: Marina)
The second and final part of the Avantasia saga created by Edguy frontman Tobias Sammet
is another masterpiece in the metal world. Part I was one of the top Metal records of last year,
the creativity, however, has not wavered and Part II is indeed on the same level as its predecessor.
Once again the album features the same wonderful cast of musicians: Michael Kiske, Henjo Richter,
David DeFeis, Sharon Del Adel, Rob Rock, Kai Hansen, Markus Grosskopf, Alex Holzwarth,
Jens Ludwig, Oliver Hartmann, André Matos, Timo Tolkki, etc with the addition of Eric Singer
(Kiss, Alice Cooper) and Bob Catley (Magnum)... and of course Tobi himself handling the
duties as the main man Gabriel. Everything is pretty much the same way first part was:
Helloween-esque speed tracks full of details, EXCELLENT singing, fast and melodic guitars, atmospheric choirs,
huge choruses, brilliant melodies and beautiful piano parts. Maybe the only differences
are that Part II is slower than Part I and that the production is somewhat heavier here.
Well, I won't compare Part I and II too much, the sure thing is that the two albums will
stand as legendary ones to the power scene. The quality is obviously excellent and it’s hard
for me to really point out my favorite tracks on the album, as I think the album should
be listened as a whole; from start to finish the disc is a treasure box. An essential buy!
(Review by: Marina)
Yes, here we have the much expected
solo project of Edguy's singer Tobias Sammet and it's better than I ever dreamed it would be!!!
"Avantasia" is a fantasy story with a historical background (some of the characters
included here have existed in reality) Mr. Sammet has recruited an amazing group of virtuoso
musicians to play a host of characters: Michael Kiske (ex-Helloween), David DeFeis (Virgin Steele),
André Matos (ex-Angra), Oliver Hartmann (At Vance), Kai Hansen (Gamma Ray), Rob Rock, Timo Tolkki
(Stratovarius), etc... Yippe!! what more do you want from a "project"? Words are not enough to
describe what you feel while listening to this CD... Tobi delight us with a powerful and exquisite
Heavy Metal and the songs are destined to make all Power Metal fans as happy as they could be.
This album is a pure magical one, you will find a variety of compositions from the epic speed
song "Reach Out for the Light" to the mid-tempo "Farewell" (with excellent choruses and medieval tunes) or the piano ballad "Inside".
The songs you must check out are: "The Glory of Rome" (with flying guitars and a chorus that
you want to sing along), the title track "Avantasia" (a mid-tempo featuring Tobias Sammet
and the legendary Michael Kiske on vocals) and the glorious & breathtaking "The Tower". But...
Hell!! there are no weak songs and as you listen to the CD, it gets better and better. Who
thought that Heavy Metal could never reach this level of perfection and majesty??? There are fantastic vocal lines,
amazing compositions and arrangements, riffs of dream, pretty good backing vocals and the epic
atmosphere needed is perfectly created... mmmm, well, it has everything!! This young guy is full of talent
and the sure thing is that "Avantasia" will be one of the best albums of 2001. A more
than good choice to start the new year... simply amazing. Long life to the king Tobi!!!
(Review by: Marina)
The band was formed by Peter Johansson (guitar) and Magnus Ek (bass) as a Metal-cover band in 1998
under the name POWERAGE. After some line-up changes, the band entered Studio Underground
in Västerĺs, Sweden in March 2000 to record their first demo CD "The Beginning". They played
some local live gigs with bands like The Storyteller and Stormwind and in March 2001 they
changed their name to AXENSTAR. In August 2001 the band once again entered the studio for
the recording of a new demo, simply called "Promo 2001", containing a high-quality mixture of
fast and hard songs. The band play powerful, melodic and fast swedish Power Metal inspired by 80's Heavy Metal
with a great guitar-melody and clean vocals (maybe not so original but who cares...)
Influences from HammerFall, Sonata Arctica,
Iron Maiden and Helloween are noticed. The opener "Confess Thy Sins" is probably my favorite
of the three tracks. It's a very powerful and fast metal track that is reminiscent of what
HammerFall does. Cool choruses. The tempo is fast in this, but for those who
like mid or slower stuff, it is here as well. "King Of Tragedy" is a mid tempo song
reminding me a little bit of Helloween, in particular the lead guitar harmonies. Finally, closing
the disc is "The Cross We Bear". Mid-tempo heavy with some great guitar work. Cool keyboard
enhancements. Iron Maiden influenced in my opinion. All in all, great work full of force
and melody, where the weakest point is the vocals, sometimes appears the lack of
capability of the singer on the high scales... but this is a very small complaint compared to
the rest of the disc. The sound quality is very good. More about
the band can be found on their Official Website.
Keep up the good work!! (Review by: Marina)
Aska hails from Dallas, Texas
(USA) and "Avenger" is the name of their 4th album and the first one that I have had the pleasure
to hear. Aska is almost unknown in Europe but it consists of 4 excellent musicians: George Call
(vocals), Darren Knapp (guitar), Jason Knight (bass) and Keith Sweatt (drums). You can find
strong influences of traditional bands like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Manowar and Virgin Steele among others. Strong and powerful vocal style, killer melodies & hooks,
pretty good guitar solos and lyrics about ancient romans, Norse mythology and Science Fiction
are featured on their songs. The album starts with the powerful "Crown of Thorns"... some great guitar melodies
reminds us that we are talking about a METAL band. Then comes the second track titled "Leather" reminding me of Iron Maiden, especially at the guitar riffs. My favorite
ones are the hymn "Escape Victorious", the fast "Eternal Night", the epic "Imperial Rome" with
its great melodies & lyrics and "Valkyries" (a real Metal hymn!!). "Valkyries" has 2 characters
with George and Darren on vocals. There's also an awesome piano instrumental track titled
"Prelude to Darkness". The CD closer "Warrior's Return" is another great instrumental song.
This is the kind of CD that each time you listen you hear something new. It also has a pretty
cool cover made by the Spanish artist Luis Royo. A great album for all true metal fans which makes me hungry for more... check them out NOW!!!!
(Review by: Marina)
Adagio consists of amazing French guitarist Stephan Forte, Pink Cream 69 vocalist David Readman, bassist
Frank Hermanny, keyboarder Richard Andersson (Majestic) and drummer Dirk Bruinenberg (Elegy).
Definitely a musically top class line-up! The album is produced by Dennis Ward (the bass player of Pink Cream 69) and it has a lot of different influences.
The music is a kind of neoclassical Heavy Metal with many influences of proggresive & classic music. Throughout the album there is
a lot of good drumming and Stephan Forte delivers impeccable guitar work, with David Readman
vocals being great. "Second Sight" is the wonferful opening track and then "The Inner Road" starts off like a shot featuring fast guitars.
Among my favourite tracks, the eleven-minute-plus "Seven Lands Of Sin" and "In Nomine..." are
particularly amazing. There are also instrumental tracks like "Order Of Enlil" and a cover of the Led Zeppelin classic "Immigrant Song".
The classical passages are very well done ("The Stringless Violin") and some tracks display clear
Malmsteen influences, whereas "Niflheim" (bonus track/demo version from the next "Adagio" album) has a Jason Becker-style. The rest of the disc follows the same formula established by these tracks and
develop to a varied album. The musicianship is simply mindblowing and every member of this
five-piece is incredibly talented. Adagio are one of the most talented new bands I've heard
in a while and I hope they'll grace us with their talents again in the future... great stuff!
(Review by: Marina)
With their third release "El Ángel Caído", Spain's Avalanch have crafted a true masterpiece and finally
starts to emerge as a band to be noticed. For those of you who have never heard these guys,
they can only be described as melodic power metal mixed with some speed-metal touches (Gamma Ray...)
There's a lot of power on this album, orchestration, great choruses, good & wonderful lyrics and beautiful
melodies. You can find speed songs ("Tierra De Nadie"), a wonderful and powerful ballad ("Antojo De Un Dios") and
instrumental tracks ("El Séptimo Día", "Santa Bárbara")... Avalanch gives a big diversity to its
music. There's a trilogy at the end of the album called "Las Ruinas del Edén" about God and its relation with Man (featuring Leo
from Saratoga as special guest on vocals) that blows you away!!!! "Corazón Negro" is my other favourite
on the album with its catchy rhythms... but what the hell am I doing? All the tracks are great!
They're all just so wonderfully written!!! The use of keyboards brings much excitement into the
songs and almost every song has a great singalong chorus and amazing solos. I can see that
Alberto Rionda is a brilliant guitarist and his talents extend to songwriting as well. Great melodies and song
arrangements, an excellent artwork by Luis Royo and production make this album a beautiful
masterpiece. Official Website: www.avalanch.as
(Review by: Marina)
This is the first album of this band coming from Argentina that have played gigs with bands
like Barón Rojo, Nightwish, Lab˙rinth and Vision Divine proving that Azeroth is a strong
force in traditional Power Metal. The album was recorded in 1999, mixed by Charlie Bauerfiend (Helloween, Blind Guardian, Angra) and the cover artwork was made
by Eric Philippe (Rhapsody, At Vance). Basically they play European Melodic Power Metal with spanish lyrics and with influences from bands like Rhapsody &
Helloween and the result is a CD with enough variety as not to let you get bored. It features fast songs ("En Agonía", "La Salida",
"En La Frontera De Toda Razón"...), powerful guitar riffs and interesting vocals by Adrián Barilari (Alianza, ex-Rata Blanca) and Christian
Bertoncelli (Imperio, ex-Horcas). The singers featured on this CD are pretty good and capable
of singing in various tones and styles (now Diego Valdez is the new member on vocals). I think "previous.jpg" border=0>
