Fierce Deity - A Terrible Fate (2024)

Fierce Deity is a strange band and one that captured my attention right from the start with their first release, Power Wisdom Courage. The mix of power metal and stoner/doom music is quite unique and Fierce Deity make it work. The songs make an impact.

If you like your music dark, heavy and atmospheric but at the same time melodic, look no further. A Terrible Fate is an excellent album and I'm so excited to see this band continue to grow and develop their unique style.

Nocturna - Lucidity (2015)

 

Nocturna have finally released Lucidity, their debut EP. Listen to it and buy it through their BandCamp page. Excellent power/prog metal with some symphonic elements. A perfect blend of European and American influences.

An outstanding release that I hope brings them success. They surely deserve it. 

See the video below for a taste of it or visit their BandCamp page here

Blind Guardian - Beyond the Red Mirror (2015)

 

Blind Guardian’s mix of power metal with a grunt, sprinkled with thrash elements, some symphonic tendencies, complex and intricate vocal lines and a great sense of the epic is unique and instantly recognisable.

Despite a lot of highs and a couple of lows in their discography, BG always deliver quality releases consistently. This is one of them. It may not have instant hits, but every song is excellent and perfectly executed. Another outstanding release from this veteran band.

Triosphere - The Heart of the Matter (2014)

 

What an excellent album this is! It absolutely rocks all the way through. A perfect blend of power with some prog elements and attitude with an incredibly versatile female vocalist. In fact she’s blown my mind. She can sing aggressive with a true heavy metal sound, but she can also croon and sound delicate and feminine when the song requires it.

A truly amazing album!

Angra - Secret Garden (2014)

 

The last few months of last year were ridiculously busy and I’m starting to catch up with some releases that I didn’t have time for back then. Secret Garden by Angra has been a very welcome surprise.

This is a great album, possibly Angra at their best (though I have a very soft spot for Holy Land). A very solid album. The band sounds tight. The prog and tribal elements add a lot to their power metal style.

It’s also worth mentioning that Fabio Lione is here at his best and Simone’s (Epica) song is also excellent. But, the duet between Doro and guitarist Bittencourt is the highlight. 

Pythia - Shadows of a Broken Past (2014)

 

Excellent release by Pythia. Symphonic metal, with some faster power metal and progressive metal elements here and there.

Unisonic - Light of Dawn (2014)

Light of Dawn is Unisonic's second full-length album and the band returns with their brand of hard-rock and power metal perfected with just a bit more heaviness and bite.

The album opens with an orchestral intro that teases some of the melodies in the album. This is followed by Your Time Has Come, a power metal song that sounds instantly familiar, fast, heavy, bright and with a memorable fist in the air chorus. In fact, Your Time Has Come is the best classic power metal song I've heard in a very long time. I have no doubt that it's going to become a classic for me.

The best news, though, is that the album is filled with excellent songs. This is an excellent release with no fillers and every single song deserves to be there. As it should be expected of the band, there are some straight forward hard rock moments, some quieter and melodic moments, but the new degree of heaviness in this release adds to the mixture and propels the band to new heights.

The band sounds tight and with a release like this they're clearly making a statement that they're serious as a band, this is not a 'side project'. The guitar work is excellent, the bass and drums provide a great rhythm section and Michael Kiske's voice sounds as glorious as ever. 

For fans of classic power metal, this is a flawless release that I just can't stop listening.

Rating: Heavy Rotation

Ancient Bards - A New Dawn Ending (2014)

Originating from Italy, Ancient Bards is a power metal band with a distinct Italian sound: symphonic and epic. But this is not a generic band and A New Dawn Ending, their third album, stands out as one of the best in its genre.

The album opens with the traditional intro which is followed by A Greater Purpose, an outstanding song that can be seen as a declaration of intentions and sets the bar incredibly high for the rest album. The best news is that, the rest of the album doesn't disappoint and keeps up the high standard set from the start. The album also offers a couple of grand songs, The Showdown, just under thirteen minutes, and the title track A New Dawn Ending which goes over sixteen minutes. Fortunately, the band doesn't get lost in the magnitude and scope of the music. Despite the symphonic epic bombast, the songs sound fresh and tight. All the fat has been trimmed and only the best parts have made it to the album.

I honestly can't highlight favourite songs, there's only two that fall a bit short, all the other tracks are absolute killers. It's refreshing to listen to a female voice in a straight forward power metal style and Sara's vocals are incredibly powerful. She commands the band with energy and delivers outstanding vocals.

Overall, this is an outstanding power metal album with an epic symphonic bent that I can't stop listening to. An absolute burst of energy that confirms Ancient Bards as one of the best in the genre right now.

Rating: Heavy Rotation

Gamma Ray - Empire of the Undead (2014)

Gamma Ray have been around for a long time and Empire of the Undead is exactly what you would expect from the band. Fast, heavy, epic and melodic, power metal. Whilst many bands have moved away from power metal and changed their styles, Gamma Ray have always stayed true to themselves. This is a band with very little evolution over the years but one that always delivers consistently.

The album opener Avalon is a perfect example of what Gamma Ray do best. The song is epic, perfectly built with a slow introduction that builds up into a half tempo majestic part with an excellent chorus. Half way through, the song increases the tempo and moves into power metal territory. Hansen has always known how to create songs like this and he nails it, once more. The song is perfectly built in terms of music contrasts, rhythm changes and story telling. 

From then on, the album is quite varied, showcasing the different sides of the band. It's hard to pick favourites but apart from Avalon I would highlight, Hellbent, a furiously fast song with shades of Judas Priest. Born to Fly and Master of Confusion, halfway through the album with a lighter and more melodic tone. And I Will Return, a song that moves into Gamma Ray's epic melodic territory again and leaves you wanting more.

Overall, Gamma Ray has delivered another great album. Their style of power metal, with little sprinkles of speed, thrash and progressive metal, is fast furious and melodic. They know how to have fun but also how to be aggressive and epic. Another great album from this band that, as always, is an absolute pleasure to listen to again and again.

Rating: Heavy Rotation

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

Timo Tolkki's Avalon - The Land of New Hope (2013)

When a living legend like Timo Tolkki, with such a long and successful career, decides to surround himself with talented musicians and singers contributing to a metal opera, it's fair to say that expectations are very, very high. I don't know if this album will become the stuff of legends but Tolkki and his collaborators deliver an outstanding album that is flawless.

The album opens with a blistering power metal song that is both inspired and memorable but just when you think that Tolkki is back to his best, the second track, A World Without Us starts and it's even better.

The album has no fillers and many stand outs. It features some of the best guitar work by Tolkki (who recorded all the guitars and bass) in many a year but is also very well supported by his guest musicians and singers. 

In terms of the vocals, Rob Rock and Russell Allen are solid in their parts. Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica and Sharon Den Adel from Within Temptation both have a small cameo halfway through the album. Michael Kiske shines (as he always does) with an epic track to close the album. Will we hear more from them in part two and three? I certainly hope so. 

The clear highlight is Elize Ryd from Amaranthe, who is strong and emotive as the central character (and in comparison to the norm -yes, I'm pointing my finger to you Tobias Sammet-, it's so good to see a strong presence in a metal opera!).

The album doesn't break much new ground but the songs are heavy, melodic, and has their own personality; this is not a continuation of Stratovarius. Tolkki presents the best bunch of songs since his golden days back in the 90s and the album certainly leaves you wanting more. I can't wait for part two!

Rating: Heavy Rotation

Serenity - War of Ages (2013)

Originating from Austria (and let's face it there aren't many bands I know from that country), Serenity is a band that stands out because of their polish and quality. Their music is a good balance of power and symphonic metal.

War of Ages presents enough variety in the songs to keep the listener interested. The guitars are generally sharp and melodic; the vocals, both male and female, are really strong and blend together perfectly; and the symphonic arrangements give the music an epic, bombastic feel without descending into a farce.

Serenity's strength are the guitar hooks and melody in general. This album delivers quite a few memorable moments and it's enjoyable all the way through consistently following on the previous album but somehow it doesn't reach the level of their previous record (or perhaps it's just that the surprise is now gone).

Very solid power/symphonic metal that will soon have you singing along.

Rating: Good Vibrations

Stratovarius - Nemesis (2013)

When bands have been around a long time, it's often hard to keep momentum. The task is even more difficult when at one time you became one of the iconic bands of your particular genre. That's what happened to Stratovarius. 

In the late 90s they were one of the biggest European power metal bands, with excellent albums such as Episode and Visions. They never recovered and the band drowned in fights amongst members. 

There were signs of a slow recovery, in the previous album, but Nemesis is a huge leap in quality. This is an excellent album from start to end. The songs are modern, fast, fierce and yet still have all the classic characteristics that made Stratovarius stand out. Melodic power metal with a little prog touch. 

This is, undoubtedly, the best Stratovarius album since Visions.

Rating: Heavy Rotation

PS: Warning, the video is quite bad... but the song is great