Mercoledì 14 Apr 2010, 10:26
Heavy metal, power metal, hard rock, melodic rock
Requiem of Time serves as the Swedish metal band Astral Doorssixth album, whereas one is an EP. They’re entering an almost inevitable phase in any musician’s career – where lack of inspiration must be compensated by pure musical talent. And it does very well in this case.
The first track, Testament of Rock, shows the listener what he’s going to ride for the next hour – a pure metal train. With a voice that really resembles the one of a certain Ronnie James Dio, which is by no means a bad thing, they start of really psyched. The next track is a typical battle hymn. It is powerful, though a little clichéd, but nevertheless quite good. Extensive guitar solo work amplifies the experience of Power and the Glory.
During the middle section of the album, the listener is shown a lot of aspects of the metal genre – and for anyone experiences with this kind of music knows that this is done exactly as the book tells. This can be both good and bad. It’s good if one likes this kind of music –then you’ll get what you expect, but nothing more, which may be bad. It fails to be relatively unique at parts, which parts it from the grand classics of the genre.
Blood River is an excellent example of the potential power of rhythm in songs. The dynamic empty/full relations which is represented here is especially nice when played really loud, e.g. in concerts.
Astral Doors does definitely show that they do their part to defend the faith – and delivers true metal. They master technical ability, songwriting and incorporation of emotion and passion into the music.
Track picks:
Anthem of the Dark, Testament of Rock, When Darkness Comes
For listeners of:
Dio, Lion’s Share, Manowar
7/10 – Very Good
By the way, this is my first reviews, and I hope I can make more. If you enjoyed the review, any response is greatly appreciated. If you've got any complaints, it's even more important for me that you tell. Rock on, and hopefully, I'll see you soon!