Sonata Arctica – The Days of Grays
Nuclear Blast Records

Rating:

In my opinion, Power metal is one of the best styles of Metal you can find and one of the bands that has been a round for a while to represent that style is Sonata Arctica. In their newest/sixth full length release entitled The Days of Grays, Sonata Arctica continues to represent the Power metal style as well as continuing to add some of the Progressive metal style just as they have in some of their other newer releases. One thing I really like about this album/band is the fact that the vocals of singer Tony Kakko really fit well with the music made by the rest of the band. Power metal bands are under a lot more critique by me since I love the style so much and since it’s hard to find really great vocalists to make the band whole. Sonata Arctica has no problem with the combination of music and vocals, and The Days of Grays is only one piece of proof. Getting more into the tracks, the one track that really jumped out at me as a favorite track is “Flag in the Ground” (Track 4), but that certainly doesn’t mean the rest of the album is bad. In fact, some of the other tracks I would recommend listening to for a great listening experience are: “Zeroes” (Track 6), “No Dream Can Heal a Broken Heart” (Track 9), and “Everything Fades to Gray (Full Version)” (Track 12) (Everything Fades to Gray (Full Version) is the “full version” because Track 1 is an instrumental version). Each of these songs brings different elements of the bands talents to help create a great album. Overall, The Days of Grays is an album I would certainly recommend to any Progressive metal and Power metal fans as well as anyone looking to get into either of those two styles and expand their metal arsenal.

Epica – Design Your Universe
Nuclear Blast Records

Rating:

Symphonic metal band Epica is back with their fifth full length release, entitled Design Your Universe, and they still sound phenomenal! The mixture of the epic and heavy music, the beautiful singing of Simone Simons, and the screams/growls of guitarist/vocalist Mark Jansen is excellent! This band really lives out their name, putting the “epic” in Epica. Design Your Universe includes 13 tracks on the Standard Release version of the album and lasts approximately 1 hour and 14 minutes with two songs lasting over 9 minutes (“Kingdom of Heaven” is approx. 13:35 and “Design Your Universe” is approx. 9:29). Within the 13 tracks, it’s definitely hard to find any stand alone tracks since all of them flow well together and support each other while keeping their own identities and being great as individual tracks, but there are certainly some I would recommend for a great listening experience before hearing the whole album. Some of the tracks I recommend include the two aforementioned tracks “Kingdom of Heaven” (Track 6) and “Design Your Universe” (Track 13/Title track), “Unleashed” (Track 3), “Tides of Time” (Track 9), and “White Waters” (Track 12) which features Tony Kakko of Sonata Arctica. Again, each of these tracks are excellent, but they all have their own identities and serve their own purpose in making Design Your Universe such a great album. Overall, I would suggest this album to any Symphonic metal fans, people looking to get into Symphonic metal, and previous Epica fans.

Pan.A.Ce.A – We the Broken
Susquehanna Entertainment

Rating:

Pan.A.Ce.A is back with their follow-up album to their February 2009 release All Or Nothing entitled We the Broken, and they are back with a vengeance! Weighing in with 13 brand new tracks, We the Broken picks right up where All Or Nothing left off and packs a good punch. The overall sound of this album is definitely melodic, but it’s also not shy on the “Hard” in Hard rock, and really, the balance between the melodic aspects and the heavier aspects couldn’t be better. One thing in this record that kind of popped out for me is the relationship between the bass parts by Matt Jaffin and drum parts by Kevin Harry. The overall musical and vocal qualities are excellent all around and they mix perfectly, but on this record, I got a lot more drums and bass (which I enjoy, being a bassist myself). The first taste of this relationship you get jumps right of the speakers in the first fifteen seconds of the first track “Too Little Too Late” with a great drum roll/fill at the start, then the bass becomes prominent as the verse begins with the vocals. From there, the musicianship stays at an excellent skill level and, again, Tim Farley’s vocals really mix well with the music (even coming in with a mid range scream near the end of “Too Little Too Late” and later in “No More Secrets”). As usual, there are some tracks on this album I would recommend for your listening pleasures. The recommended tracks from We the Broken include: “Too Little Too Late” (Track 1), “Stay” (Track 4), “No More Secrets” (Track 8), “The Fix” (Track 11), and “Everything Is Different (When I’m With Her)” (Track 12). Now, these are recommended tracks from the whole album, but really, all of the tracks on this album are solid and worth listening too. Overall, We the Broken is an excellent album I recommend to any previous Pan.A.Ce.A fans as well as any Hard rock fans out there.

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Echoes of Eternity – As Shadows Burn
Nuclear Blast Records

(4.5/5)

For years, Heavy metal has been a male dominated style of music, but Progressive metal band Echoes of Eternity is one of the many bands out today that are proving that there is certainly a place for women in Metal. Echoes of Eternity’s place amongst the ranks has been proved through the release of their newest full length album As Shadows Burn. Combining several different styles of Metal, As Shadows Burn‘s 9 tracks nearly jump through the speakers as you listen to them with a subtle “epic” feel behind the pounding combination of double bass drums, Death metal style blast beats (used occasionally), and the speed of the guitar riffs behind the beautiful voice of Francine Boucher. The outcome is nothing short of incredible. Now, as great as each track is on this album, there are a few I have to make mention of for a good example of the album’s overall power: “Ten of Swords” (Track 1), “Descent of a Blackened Soul” (Track 5), and “Funeral in the Sky” (Track 9). Each of these tracks portrays the diversity used by Echoes of Eternity to make their mark on the Metal world. Overall, These tracks combined with the other 6 tracks make As Shadows Burn a great record I would recommend to Progressive metal fans as well as Power metal fans and even some Symphonic metal fans. All in all, it’s a great album for your Metal arsenal!

Oh, Sleeper – Son of the Morning
Solid State Records

(4/5)

Since the first time I heard Oh, Sleeper, they have been in the top of my list of favorite Metalcore bands and with releases like their newest full length album Son of the Morning, it shouldn’t be hard to see why they have stayed there! On top of being a great Metalcore band, the fact that Oh, Sleeper is a Christian band is a plus in my book, but either way, the onslaught brought by the 10 tracks on this album makes a hard argument for anyone to deny them despite whatever religious affiliation you may or may not have. Moving on to the tracks in the album, all 10 tracks bring their own identity to the table and make this album as great as it is, but there are a few I would recommend to get a really good preview of the overall album. The list of tracks I really enjoy consists of “Son of the Morning” (Track 1/Title track), “Breathing Blood” (Track 4), “World Without A Sun” (Track 6), and “The Finisher” (Track 10). Once again, the entire album is excellent, but these four tracks provide an excellent example of the overall talent this band has. Overall, if you’re already a Metalcore fan or you’re just getting into Metalcore/Oh, Sleeper, I certainly recommend Son of the Morning to help beef up your arsenal.