Vanishing Point - Distant is the Sun (2014)

Originating from Melbourne, Australia, Vanishing Point are now a veteran band with this their fifth release and, after a long hiatus, they're back with Distant is the Sun, an excellent album that builds on their past sound and expands it to fuller, more epic music. Vanishing Point have always stood out to me as a band that right from the start sounded unique, like no other. They've evolved across albums, expanded their sound while staying true to themselves and Distant is the Sun is the next assured step in their discography.

The album opens with an intro that leads into King of Empty Promises, a song that mixes perfectly their classic mixture of melodic metal, with a little dose of power metal and progressive flourishes. It's obvious from the very start that the band has made an effort to incorporate a fuller orchestral sound with great arrangements that add texture to the songs, making this the most epic sounding Vanishing Point album to date.

The guitar work, as it should be expected from VP, is top notch. The guitar solos are perfectly measured and the progressive flourishes always keep the songs interesting. Silvio Massaro's vocals sounds as solid as ever, with a great mix of powerful high vocals, heightened by a good use of harmonies and a good deal of emotion in his voice.

I can't really say which songs stand out as every single one of them speaks to me in different ways, but at the moment, I would highlight the opener King of Empty Promises, the fast and hard hitting Circle of Fire (with guest vocals by Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica), the incredibly infectious When Truth Lies, the more expansive and classic VP sounding Pillars of Sand and the powerful Walls of Silence.

Vanishing Point's greatest achievement, to me, is that the band always sounds fresh, melodic, easy, catchy, but it's at the same time creative, full of twists and unafraid to take risks. Overall, Distant is the Sun is an outstanding album for fans of melodic, progressive and power metal. The songs are fresh and catchy but at the same time display enormous complexity and depth. It's too early to say this will be the metal album of the year for me but (though I would love to be surprised) it will be very hard to top this one.

Rating: Heavy Rotation