There are so many aspects to Machine Head’s 2007 LP “The Blackening” that are positive, but perhaps the best one is their duality in style, purpose, and technique - much akin to the yin-yang model of cohesion. There’s a rotation from slow to fast, aggressive to cautionary, thrash to progressive, solos to duets, and raw to proficiency. An album of eight tracks, most of them are long enough to reveal these traits within each song. “Slanderous” and “Clenching The Fists of Dissent” are excellent, complex, and highly creative examples, while “Halo” - by itself - could be the best track because it includes it all: impressive soloing and dueling (low on virtuosity, but very high on scaling), alternating classic thrash rhythms with power-influenced melody, and the vocals swinging from the midrage yell to the clean on the refrain. Another pleasure to be enjoyed is the apparent lack of a pattern connecting the songwriting, too. As much as the sheer loudness is effectively blasted after soft intros on a few songs (”Clenching…”, “Halo”, and “A Farewell To Arms”) this isn’t the norm. The point being is that although the overall direction is quite pronounced, each song is independent and can stand on its own merits. If there are central musical themes, it would be the tendency to play aggressive rather than fast, and sticking with structured solos, both single and harmonized. Since these choices work, the overall feel of the album is elevated. Lyrically, the same holds true. The attitude on most of the songs is honest. For example, a politically charged message that is “Clenching…” is more cautionary than angry. Even the most emotional song “Aesthetics of Hate” (a tribute to Dimebag with a more pointed message to his executioner) is still intellectualy driven. All put together, Machine Head’s “The Blackening” was well concieved, excellently directed, and executed with precision; one of the great metal achievements of 2007.

Although the name of the album is “Into The Light”, the name of the group assembled here - The Nuclear Blast All Stars - is much more indicative of the awesome power these tracks unleash. Without diving too much into the actual analysis of the music and lyrics, the feel of this album is truly wonderful for any fan of metal. Most of the songs are written and played by the current members of Rage. Their efforts are fully rewarded by the collective contributions of some of metal’s most renowned vocalists. All of the songs rock, but what’s an even better pleasure is the conscious effort to pair up singers with songs written and delivered right to their respective wheelhouses. Tobi Sammet (from Edguy) gets a melodic power metal song, while Schmier (from Destruction) screams along perhaps the heaviest song on the album, and so on and so forth. Even better than that, all of the guest singers deliver the quality one would hope for and expect; no one tanks it or sings via contract or obligation. The liner notes reveal that as much as Victor Smolski was happy to have everyone there, the singers were just as honored to be picked. It can be argued then that this compilation is all the more special because of this mutual respect. What isn’t verified is whether all of these songs were specifically written for this album. If so, then “Into The Light” is much, much more than just a complilation album. Again, credit and thanks must be given to Smolski, the man who not only put this project together but also wrote the songs in all their variety. A final note: Smolski plays the all the guitar and bass tracks on most of the songs (there are a couple of guest musicians, but that’s minimal), so when you hear the bass solo and lead solo on “Terrified” - it’s from the same guy. No opinion here, other than those two solos were pretty wicked. Your favorite song will also most likely be based on which vocalist you enjoy hearing most, too. Of course, when you indeed have an all-star lineup like this, there are no bad tracks. For any fan of metal, Nuclear Blast All Stars’ “Into The Light” is quite a special event to experience.

Ride The Sky’s 2007 debut LP, “New Protection” is a product of tried and true radio and movie soundtrack formula with a twist of metal. The synthesizer is the main instrument used to bear the hooking flag for each song and coupled with the highly melodic choruses, the result echoes the kind of singles one would hear from an 80’s movie soundrack. Add to that, almost all of the songs follow a strict pattern of type A songwriting: verse one, chorus, verse two, chorus, solo, repeat chorus. When it works it’s great, but from the middle to the end of the album the creativity input wanes, thus making that same pattern dull and old. That being said, four of the first five songs are quite solid with “A Smile From Heaven’s Eye” being the odds on favorite as best song followed by the equally likeable “The Prince of Darkness”. Another interesting point is that Uli Kusch, the former Helloween and Gamma Ray drummer, is credited for the music on every song. Structurally speaking, this is evident on most of the songs. The rhythm and bass guitar play almost every note that Kusch bangs out, making the songs highly beat driven. From within this stiff direction of beat and song structure, variation as a result becomes minimal. Synth and lead guitar take turns on solos and some fills between vocal lines, bass gets the call to lead the verses in only two songs, (”Break The Chain” and “The End Of Days”) and the same number holds true for the rhythm guitar (”Black Cloud” and “Heaven Only Knows”). The vast majority of the songs’ themes is introduced via synthesizer in the beginning and echoed by Bjorn Jansson, the lead vocalist during the chorus. His voice is a pleasure to listen to; it’s raspy yet strong, a kind of middle ground between screaming and singing. Kusch is also a highlight to listen to as well; he has to be - he is easily heard while the rhythm guitar sits waaay back on the RTS bus. “Black Cloud” is probably the only song that features some strong and fast riffing from beginning to end. The question when listening to “New Protection” then is whether you enjoy their highly produced formula and style. If you prefer variation, virtuosity, and metal on the heavy side, then Ride The Sky’s “New Protection” is not the album to play.

Nation Beyond’s 2007 “The Aftermath Odyssey” has the feel of a well-intentioned, progressive metal project. Perhaps if this was a first draft, it would have easily been called likeable; however, since this is the final product; a lot of what we have presented here remains to be desired. Perhaps the most wanting wish for “The Aftermath Odyssey” would be to hear a much better connection between the lyrical concept and its music. “Aftermath” is a good example of what the whole could have been: there’s a battle horn intro that sounds off the following heavy guitar riff as well as a most somber piano interlude that gives off a funeral-like feel one would find complimentary to the story’s hopeless finale. “Soulmates” accomplishes the same thing by not only writing the song in classic ballad style, but also features Sara Heurlin as the female voice to render the duet authentic. The rest of the album, though, doens’t match up well at all. Worse, the music just isn’t great, not that the abilities of the band are bad. “New Eden City” showcases an admirable example of Jonas Karlgren’s synth work, but the spoken words near the end of the song (a slight reworking of the American Pledge of Allegiance) is unnecessary and thus kills the mood. Joakim Hedestedt provides a wonderful bass sound on “The Council” as well as on “The Last Deciever”. Basically speaking from a genre standpoint, this is a rock opera, but as much as there are plenty of the operatic parts (including a well done introduction song called “The End”. It’s a collage of CNN-like sound clips of mayhem and doom culminating in the Big Blast and the end) the rock/metal parts are either not there or simply unmoving. “In The Ashes”, the third track, is the first one to churn out an up tempo metal riff. “The Council” has a metallic machine gun that blasts away after a choral interlude near the end of the piece, but that’s six songs in. It should be noted that “Confessions”, from a music to lyrics point of view, is probably the most valuable song on the album due to its much needed rising action feel to buttress a storyline that’s fast coming apart. In fact, the story itself is probably the weakest part of “The Aftermath Odyssey”. The lead vocals are weak, too, for Neils Lindstrom’s voice is not only thin, but there is a faux soul approach to the slower parts that doesn’t pay off well at all. Anyway, back to the concept. Basic and straightforward, it’s about a man who survives nuclear fallout, finds hope and a future in a woman, who then turns out to be a traitor to the surviving community. The conflict rises between this city and the Others to a level of war and the result of said war leaves our man hopeless and futureless in the end. The last song, “Point Zero” is thus a very gloom and doom ending with no moral or point to this blackened ash odyssey in sight. The concluding point here as well as for the whole album is had there been one from conception through to the finished work, Nation Beyond’s “The Aftermath Odyssey” might have ended up being a much greater accomplishment.

The cool thing about Tristania’s 2007 LP “Illumination” is as heavy as it is on the gothic side of the moon, the metal side is ever present and prominent. “Mercyside”, the opening track on the album, is a fast, aggressive, pulse-raising example of great metallic rhythm. With the exception of all songs balladesque, the guitars are always in the foreground regardless of pace and that’s a good thing, for the primary characteristic of all things metal should be as such. Of course, there are plenty of gothic musings which is Tristania’s trademark. “Destination Departure” showcases female lead singer Vibeke Stene in her best Ariatic form, “Ab Initio” (a possible cover?) is the dark prom night ballad of the album, and “Deadlands” is perhaps the best example of Stene’s power and control over her vocal pitch, especially when she unleashes her operatic style. The male vocals, by Osten Bergoy; however, is the stamp of gothic approval. His vocal parts compliment Stene with a very moody, stabbing-in-the-heart, groan throughout, and is quite a pleasing alternative to the death metal (or extreme) grunts peppered on the few tracks that it appears. The percussion occasionally sounds off a great cadence. “Fire” provides a great feel in this regard, as does the next track, “Lotus”. This song, though, reveals the one ugly truth of Tristania songwriting skills - they’re good when they’re fast and when they’re good when they’re slow, but when they come at you in midtempo, the result is unimpressive to say the least. They’re too good to accuse them of tanking a movement, so it’s just better to say that when they go the speed limit they are at their most tame and lame. That being said, the grand slam of the album is “Sacrilege”. The five note repetitivie vocal line by Stene is not only the highlight of “Illumination” but skyrockets “Sacrilege” into level of one of the best metal songs of ‘07. It’s a truly awesome cut - from the choir-like opening on, the chorus explodes like a Roman candle and all parts are perfectly harmonized, from both vocalists and their respective parts to the most aggressive guitar riff on the album. “Illumination” benefits on the whole from “Sacrilege” but even better, “Illumination” is a diverse, effective, and mood-swinging record that should retain its power over time as a very good artistic effort by Tristania.

Emerald Sun’s 2007 LP “Escape From Twilight” goes beyond playing to their metal influences; it is a complete and utter imitation of ’80’s Helloween. The hard part about reviewing this album was searching for anything that signifies Emerald Sun music, and unfortunately there was little. Almost the entire album is unoriginal, and if there is a strong side to Emerald Sun it could be argued that they play “power metal” very well - verbatim to the very core of what defines that genre. That being said, the synth intros are great, and the second track “Scream Out Loud” rings out an anthemic chorus with a candy-like feel to the ears. The slowed down parts is where there are signs of a potentially good band. “High In The Sky”, as chiche-riddled as it sounds, does feature a slow middle movement and “Not Alone”, the ballad of the album, succeeds in delivering its emotional message. “The Story Begins” can be argued as the best song even though it is a slow song - the medieval inspired time signature being the plus side to the piece. The song “Emerald Sun” is also a good one due to the epic nature on the whole as well as the middle interlude adding some colorful spoken word chanting. The vast majority of the album; however, screams knock-off. The lead singer, Jimmy Santrazami, is touted in the L.M.P. enforced bio as a Michael Kiske sound-a-like, but in truth his voice is thin, untrained, and weak. A big songwriting mistake appears on “Sword Of Light” where the vocals are highlighted a capella thus revealing in glaring light these weaknesses. “H.M.” on top of it’s unoriginal lyrics even inserts stadium crowd noise in the middle, proving their desire to be at the end without regard to the means. The most positive thing that can be said about Emerald Sun’s “Escape From Twilight” is that if you love power metal and can care less about whether it’s been done before, then it great.

Avenged Sevenfold’s self-titled 2007 album is a very mature blend of many colors, elements, and styles making the overall feel of this work a sort of alternative heavy metal rock and roll. Although aggressive rhythms are present (”Critical Acclain” is perhaps the best example from start to end, but any song that features a guitar solo does so with a heavy metallic backgrop), a lot of this record ventures more towards tempos other than fast and hard. What’s great about this approach is not just merely the embracing feel of this direction, but that these new whisky-smooth concoctions retain and maintain its sharp edge as a result. “Lost” blares out a great horn section and features a duet with a female guest voice. “Afterlife” sports a string section, and “Unbound (The Wild Ride)” not only throws in a little piano into the mix, but also adds a group of background vocalists so large that it nears choir-like status. All of these songs come off sounding better for it. “Gunslinger” and “Dear God” (the “aawww” ballad of the album) are probably the two songs that benefit most from these additives, this time by way of accoustic and slide guitar. Don’t be fooled; however, by the “Gunslinger” title. A wonderful work of art here, the motif is actually a metaphor heralding fidelity - the idea that M.Shadows has stayed faithful on the road by keeping his gun in his holster. Actually, to bring up the lyrical aspects of “AX7″ the ideas expressed on most of these songs are of a mature and sound mind, being careful not to be preachy (again, in “Critical Acclaim”) but offering an honest point of view worthy of respect. The music of the album is parallel to these thoughts even to the core of AX7’s playing style. The theme of each song is driven more from the bass than the rhythm guitar even though none of the music is bass-driven. Rather, what this approach does accomplish is shine a light on the high end parts. “Lost” starts out with featured melodic lead that doesn’t dissipate when the rest of the band jumps in. “Almost Easy” is perhaps a better example with an ascending lead fill between the verses. Even the melodic choruses shine more because Shadows and the boys aren’t competing for your attention. “Avenged Sevenfold” does feature a masterpiece and it’s “A Little Piece Of Heaven”. Not only is everything afformentioned showcased here, but the level to which this composition accomplishes is so sky high. An all emcompassing song in an all emcompassing album, “Avenged Sevenfold” is a very satisfying work of Sunset California Strip steak heavy metal.

Piet Sielck and his vibrating, razor-sharp guitar sound triumphantly returns on Iron Savior’s 2007 LP release “Megatropolis”. Although the album’s music and songwriting isn’t always original per se, there is a grittier, dirtier approach to the playing; however, that seems to fit the wider range of its lyrical content. For the most part, gone is the Iron Savior storyline. The last song “Farewell And Goodbye” is the one exception. Not only does it speak of the Savior, a previous guitar riff resurfaces here to reinforce the tie-up. As well, the title is also the theme, complete with a synthesized cavalcade of bells at the end to signal the grand send off of the Iron Savior saga. What is sung about is very current, hedonistic, and bleak. Songs like “The Omega Man”, “Cyber Hero”, and “Megatropolis” are great fusions of this less than polished sound and the darker shade of our world today. The best song on the album could be “Cybernetic Queen” for not only does it feature a shining metallic chorus near anthemic levels, the lyrical theme is among the most sinister and cold. To add, even songs like “Running Riot” and “Flesh” seem to benefit from this juxtaposition as well, even though on the surface they sound like they’ve been done before - as if they were previously thrown away tracks but now have seen the light of day only because of this new makeover. One critical point that needs to be made, though, is the vocal change up by Sielck. There is a conscious effort here to sing clean with a vibrato on some of the tracks, and the result of this isn’t appealing nor impressive at all. Other than his rhythm guitar sound and production expertise, Sielck’s voice is one of Iron Savior’s greatest strengths. Fortunately there are plenty of his classic, mid-range, throaty vocal chords to go around, and that’s a good thing because “Megatropolis”, overall, has a solid vibe and a great sound brought to us by one of the greatest power metal creators out there today.

“Thrash Anthems”, the 2007 re-recorded compilation album by Destruction is a two handed horned salute to all that is classic ’80’s thrash metal. All of the tracks exemplify two things - one, that making thrash metal was paramount to the band’s overall direction, and two - that throughout all of the highlighted tracks from the featured albums, that this direction never deviated from its course. The feelings evoked from listening to this best-of compilation is akin to a breath of fresh, metallic air, exhaling in the faces of other thrash bands who have erroneously changed their tune for the worse. This is the strength of the record - to remark how through the years the attitude and style still remains the same. Even songs like “Cracked Brain” and “Reject Emotions”, which feature slow introductions, still manage to rip and rock through the rest of the track - the very idea for all “slow” thrash songs. This holds true even for the two new songs on the album, “Profanity” and “Deposition (Your Heads Will Roll)”. Although “Deposition” features an extra helping of melody (most notable in the background vocal line) and an accoustic outro, it can be argued that both these songs fit comfortably around the earlier offerings and stand up to the level of heaviness previously set. One point should be made - these are all quality songs, but in terms of popularity Destruction is not a first tier band. Why? One guess as evidenced by “Thrash Anthems” is that there are no memorable guitar solos, although “Death Trap” displays an awesome exception. That could be due to the three man line-up, especially considering that the band didn’t become a whole lot stronger when they added a second guitarist later on. Of course, when they had one guitar the music was very strong to begin with, and perhaps this is the greatest aspect of Destruction’s music. For those familiar and not, Destruction’s “Thrash Anthems” delivers loud and proud all that is righteous in heavy metal.

The second disc of Therion’s 2007 release “Gothic Kabbalah” features even less of an overall musical direction than the first disc, save for perhaps “Adulruna Rediviva”, “The Wand of Abaris”, and “The Chain of Minerva”. The latter two songs are very concise in conposition with a successful blending of many elements of symphonic sound. Unfortunately, the level of metal is very low, and as in the case of most of the other tracks, almost non-existent. As mentioned in the review of the first part, the hard and heavy parts here seem to lose its place and relevance when put up against the various plush parts because of the overwhelming number of contributing artists stirring this musical concoction. It’s actually quite amazing how with so much going on the end result is rather flat. The vocal patterns show this point best. All of the male vocals are weak, unimpressive, and annoying. As beautiful as the female voices are, they appear mostly for their own sake - not for the song. The afformentioned songs are the exception, of course, especially in the case of “Adulruna Rediviva”, if not the masterpiece of Gothic Kabbalah then at least the best song on disc two. In fact, “Adulruna” features it all - every voice, every musician, every instrument, and every sound. It also features an insane amount of movements throughout its eleven-plus minute time frame. Alone, it highlights what’s great about Therion. Placed with the rest of the second disc, it also validates the phrase “too much”. It’s for this reason that although quite good in scope and magnitude “Gothic Kabbalah” thus encompasses “too much” of everything for the album to be considered great.