Ehhh, I don't know. This is traditional heavy metal from Greece that sort of has that whole Primal Fear thing going on, but this has more of a hard rock sort of vibe, and the vocals are toned down and not really that Halford-like (except for a few shrill backing vocals). It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't so simple and boring. It's way too redundant, the tempos are too consistently moderate, and the songs are way too fucking long! Shit, almost every song is more than five minutes, and some are more than six, seven, or even nine! There's no need for that at all! There are some awesome guitar harmonies at times, and here and there they drop the upbeat metal flag in favor of a slightly darker edge, but it's still too damn slow all the time... if they sped up the riffs the songs would be shorter and more energetic, and that should help out a lot. I like the vocal harmonies, but the high-pitched backing vocals are a waste, and some of the normal singing can get lame at times... the guy's pretty solid for the most part, though. The production is alright. It's nice and clean, and aside from the fact that drums sort of sound programmed, I like it. The guitars are good, the vocals are fine, etc. I'd turn up the bass and give the drums more of a natural sound, that should do the trick. Leave the rest as is. I'm not into the layout. The band name is cheesy and therefore so is the cover art that milks the band name for all it's worth, and for some god damn reason this label is absolutely obsessed with plastering posed band photos all over the place. Every other page of the booklet features a solo shot of a band member, there's a collage of band photos in the center spread, and there's a posed group shot on the back cover. No thanks. I'm not into the fantasy lyrics either. "There is no escaping, my desperate howling, My silent cry, Trapped in a body, I am a wolf, With human heart..." I'll pass. There are some great riffs here, and a couple of parts are pretty damn catchy, but as a whole this is incredibly boring. If these guys cut the fat and played faster they could be awesome for a straight up power metal band, but none of these songs stick out in my mind.
[Black Lotus]
Running time - 51:08, Tracks: 8
[Notable tracks: I like some of the riffs, but none of the songs really stand out]
Black Lotus Records - http://www.black-lotus-recs.com
