Artist:  Children of Bodom
Album:  Halo of Blood
Genre:  Melodic Death/Power/Black Metal
Label:  Nuclear Blast
Release: June 11, 2013 (North America)

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There are many “what-if” questions in the timeline of heavy metal. What if Randy Rhoads never got on that plane? What if Metallica didn’t give Dave Mustaine the boot? What if Jari didn’t take 8 years to release half of Time? Probably asked frequently amongst half of the polarized CoB fanbase is what if Bodom didn’t jump on the commercial bandwagon after Hate Crew Deathroll? Well, the answer can be found on Halo of Blood, which effectively combines the heavier, power thrashing style they’ve become accustomed to, with their early black metal influence and sense of melody that made them so loved in the beginning. Die-hard fans will be teeming with excitement upon hearing the lead-off track, “Waste of Skin” (think “Hate Me!”), which kicks things off with one of their trademark catchy melodies and  is the first of many old school Bodom moments to come. Right away the listener is thrown into the comfort zone of the glory days, which is great considering the lack of those moments in the band’s recent work. “Bodom Blue Moon“, “All Twisted“, and “One Bottle” and a “Knee Deep” are all trademark Bodom tracks that will quickly become fan favorites.

Funny how they choose to release an album with a winter atmosphere in June, but it’s a presence most welcomed and gives Janne’s keys some meaning again. You can thank him for the black metal feeling, as its influence is definitely felt. Alexi’s guitar-work is ace as usual, and even makes some room for Roope, who is a brilliant guitarist himself, to throw in a solo or two. It would be a refreshing to see a little more of him though, perhaps in a more tag-team role as he and Alexi shared in Sinergy. Then again, Sinergy didn’t have Janne Warmen. It’s always great to hear him and Alexi going at it with the vigorous, yet friendly competition they have. Henkka’s bass is in the mix doing its thing, and ahhhh, blastbeats… Jaska serves them up for the first time in ages and is the typically excellent backbone of the music of Children of Bodom. The actual musicianship of these guys has never been questioned, and they continue to produce in peak form.

Halo of Blood is littered with pleasant surprises, using elements both familiar and new to the CoB style. First and foremost is the title track that is borderline black metal, and stands out as one of the heaviest Bodom tunes ever. Then there’s the dark ballad “Dead Man’s Hand on You,” the slow song that everyone has been talking about. Hearing Children of Bodom coming out with, I shit you not, a grand piano, clean guitars, and (what sound like) love lyrics should be flabbergasting. But like Chuck Schuldiner’s famous kitten shirt, it doesn’t feel one bit out of place and can even be considered a transcending point for the band. Given their typical aggressiveness, it’s great to hear them take a step outside their usual domain and take a risk.

Possibly the most diverse music in their catalogue, Halo of Blood is without a doubt, the most innovative and exciting record Children of Bodom has released in a decade. Sure, there’s still going to be those nose-picking naysayers who will bitch and moan that it isn’t Hatebreeder II. Indeed, it would be wrong to call Halo of Blood a full-on back to roots album that you would sell your soul for. What it is however, is the fine product of a band that has established growth in their sound righting the ship and resuming course. Safe sailing Alexi and Co. just stay afloat this time please…

Highlight Tracks: Waste of Skin, Halo of Blood, Dead Man’s Hand on You, All Twisted

The post Music Review | Children of Bodom’s Halo of Blood appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

The event was hosted all day, starting at 3pm. The first band to play, Velosity ripped up the outside stage and pumped up the crowd for what was to come. I’ve seen this band many times live and they never seem to disappoint. Their neoclassical solos and killer bass riffs always capture everyone’s attention. This Saturday afternoon was well over 90 degrees, and in the blistering hot sun they managed to keep a crowd going on the outside stage.

In between alternating stages, the Annialation Production stage located indoors showcased Modrost as the second band of the day. It was my first time seeing them live. They brought an 80’s feel  with the belching high pitch notes and the fast speed metal riffs. During their set, I noticed the sound wasn’t the best. They seemed to be having shortages in some of the cables. This problem continued throughout the entire event on both stages.

Many local bands hit the Poor Kids Stage with their best material and the crowd favorites. Infinite Death, Sakrificer, and Speedwolf shared the outside stage. Speedwolf’s set was one not to miss. Even though the sound issues persisted, their generosity had everyone in awe. They played half a set and allowed local band Witchaven to finish their remaining time. Everyone rushed to the stage and automatically started a massive pit. This is where the first crowd surfer emerged. It was nice to see how a band like Speedwolf cut their set short in order to allow an up-and-coming band to share the stage.

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Indoors, Xpulsion, and Mantic Ritual played, while Paralyzer was a no-show. The indoor stage was sticking to their schedule and just left a buffer period instead of having the next band play earlier. Most of those who attended where awaiting Morbid Saint and MOD, so I thought it was a great thing that they did not decide to push ahead of time because there were many who were rushing to beat the LA rush hour traffic.

After seeing Nunslaughter plenty of times, these guys never seem to disappoint. Their killer stage presence never seems to fail. Also, they always play crowd favorites which are very pleasing. Fueled by Fire, as one of the original bands playing the first Thrasho sure did face a certain challenge of expectations to be met. The guys played a killer set and played a new song for us in anticipation to their new album that will be release this year. Much greatness is expected to come from them, and they’ve yet to disappoint.

I was awaiting the mighty Ghoul all night. Once they hit the stage many crazed fans were already pushing into the flimsy built stage outdoors. I thought all of the stage divers were going to break the stage and lighting that was being used. Their set contained many fun songs such as Gutbucket, Splatterthrash, and Rise, Killbot, Rise! The sound did them no justice. They had no feedback and the sound was very terrible. This did not seem to stop the demented fans from revolting in the pit and nearly killing each other when the ghouls tossed one of their skateboard decks into the crowd.

Once they wrapped up with the outside stage, everyone squeezed back indoors. This is where the sound issues improved drastically. In my opinion, Morbid Saint had the cleanest sound and riled up the crowd the most. The biggest crowd response was from them and had The Vex spinning in a mosh. By the time MOD hit the stage, the crowd seemed pretty dead and tired. They still had a pretty good response and most people were stoked to see them live.

Overall, the show was a success.  A few things could have been tweaked but there is plenty of room for improvement. I’d like to thank Annialation Productions, Poor Kids Radio and everyone else who was a part of making this event happen. The two crews really worked their asses off for all of us and will continue working hard to bring us plenty of amazing events. Hope to see you at the next Thrasho! 

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Artist:  Noisem
Album:  Agony Defined
Genre: Death/Thrash Metal
Label:  A389 Recordings
Release: June 15, 2013

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The album opens with an instant kick in the teeth with the blistering “Voices in the Morgue”, and keeps going for 25:47 of pure death/thrash aggression.  The dual guitar attack of Sebastian Phillips and Travis Stone harkens back to such classic bands as Demolition Hammer and Morbid Angel, while Yago Ventura’s bass playing on tracks like “Desire and Disgust” is definitely influenced heavily by Cannibal Corpse.  In fact, the entire album gives me a very “Eaten Back to Life” feel, which is an EXTREMELY good thing.

One of the most impressive things about the album, to me, is the drumming, especially when you take into consideration that they were recorded by a sixteen year old.  As a matter of fact, the oldest member of the band is bassist Ventura, at a fresh 20 years old.

And of course, what would this album be without the vocals?  Tyler Carnes’ vocals tear through you like a perfect mix between Repulsion’s Scott Carlson, Morbid Angel’s David Vincent (Before his Genitorturers ‘Evil-D’ days), and Obituary’s John Tardy.  Tracks like “Chronic Dementia” and “Severed” showcase his vocals perfectly, with the latter having some of the coolest lyrics I find myself singing along to when I blast this album down the street (The mortician is about to begin/to lay to waste the bodies he’s defiled/Raping the dead, the most unspeakable sin/Rotten stench of the bodies left piled/YAOOOOOGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!)

The production on the album is another high point for me.  It’s clear, but it doesn’t suffer from being TOO clear, like a lot of modern thrash albums seem to.  The album tears into you with visceral aggression and doesn’t let up until it’s over.

 [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtZRu5cl060]

Overall, this is a seriously kickass album, from front to back.  Every single song is fast, aggressive, short and to the point.  Noisem doesn’t fuck around, and one look at some live footage of these kids shows that perfectly.  Catch them live this summer at Maryland Deathfest (I’ll see you fuckers there!), Scion Rock Fest, or on tour in the Midwest with Ringworm, Mutliation Rites and Encrust.

The post Music Review | Noisem’s “Agony Defined” is the Definition of Kick-Ass Death/Thrash appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Just when you thought singing about Satan was as redundant as kicking a dead horse, Ghost comes out of nowhere and makes it sound more mysterious and fresh than ever before. Part of that, is no doubt, because of their extraordinary use of imagery. Their choice of concealing their identities is what gives magic to the music, and for this reason, I hope they never do reveal themselves. Secondly, Papa Emeritus II’ voice is absolutely mesmerizing. It fits the music with such perfection, to the point where you question if any other vocalist is more important to their band than Papa is to Ghost. It wouldn’t matter if Freddie Mercury was behind the microphone at a Ghost show; it just wouldn’t have the same effect. The vocals are entrancing and irreplaceable the way they are. Then there are the lyrics, which have a really profound impact if you know them. They’re arguably the scariest and chilling satanic lyrics written since Mercyful Fate. The best part about this is that you actually take them seriously because like Mercyful Fate, they aren’t blatant, stereotypical devil worshipping. With many death and black metal bands, you just laugh at the lyrics because they’re so outlandishly evil and ridiculous that you can’t process them as anything more than a joke. But with lyrics like “Perverted are your wishes and dreams, tanning in Lucifer’s beams,” you actually go, “woah… these guys are really singing about the devil!”

The music itself is incredibly unique. It sounds like nothing that has ever been done before, yet it’s maddeningly addicting. Before I dabbled into Ghost, most people would explain them to me as a mesh between Mercyful Fate and Blue Oyster Cult, with a trace of the doomy sound of early Black Sabbath. This is true to some extent, but the emphasis is much more on the Sabbath sound than Fate. In fact, aside from the heavily borrowed satanic influence, Ghost doesn’t really resemble Mercyful Fate music-wise. The guitars are extremely old school. They don’t have that heavily distorted crunch that developed in the 80s; rather, they closely mirror Tony Iommi’s riffing on the first Black Sabbath record. The music is incredibly well written and shows lots of experimentation. “Secular Haze” for example, incorporates an eerie circus vibe, which translates into a chilling piece of music. Then there’s the “Ghuleh/Zombie Queen” that begins as a very slow ballad for about three minutes before breaking into a surf rock metal jam. These guys know how to write songs, they’re such fantastic musicians!

The only complaint I have is a slight gripe with the production. While the album is layered well, the guitars feel a bit weak overall. I mentioned already that they aren’t too heavily distorted, which is all well and good, but it seems like they’re kind of mudded out a bit. I didn’t really notice it until I watched some live videos of them and noticed that the guitars had a much more presiding effect. This made me question why it couldn’t have been the same on the album, but it’s only a minor point and by no means takes anything away from what a spectacular album Infestissumam is.

Ghost is without a doubt the most exciting and interesting metal band on the scene right now. Instead of making carbon-copy mimicry of their influences, they instead draw from them and evolve them to another platform. The aura of mystique shrouding this band only fuels the hype, and is the closest thing many of us will ever have to compare with the old-timers who grew up in the glory days of metal. So go out to see them on their North American tour, and experience their mesmerizing musical black mass firsthand. The nameless ghouls in the cloaks will blow your minds and leave you wondering if there are actual ghouls beneath the hoods. It’s not such a crazy thought.

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Upon arriving to the show, I was only really excited to see Absu perform, but as soon as Highland hit the stage they caught my attention. As a local Los Angeles band, they sure stood out as an opening act. They steer away from the same repetitive riffs and are more complex than the hundreds of local act I have seen yet. I can’t wait to see how they grow as a band.

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Photos by Lili.Scarlet Photography

The immortal sorcery of Absu was casted upon us as soon as they hit the stage. They came back with a vengeance after nearly four years of not playing a show in Los Angeles. Prior to their set, the mighty Proscriptor, Ezezu, and Vis Crom answered many questions from diehard fans and were very open to taking photos as a souvenir of such a killer night. Their set consisted of many old tracks of The Sun of Tiphareth to their most recent album Abzu. Some of my favorite songs of the night consisted of; “Swords and Leather”, “Amy” and “Never Blow Out the Eastern Candle”.

This was truly the best treat we could all ask for

The true highlight of the night hands down was the “Stone of Destiny”. I was confused at why they were changing out the snare drum during the set, when he clearly didn’t damage it in any way or didn’t need a different one for a certain song.  It turns out he didn’t need it at all! This was a surprise to all of us, Proscriptor jumps off his kit and belches out his killer vocals for the “Stone of Destiny”. You would not assume he has such a great stage presence moving from one end of the stage to the other, being that he’s always in the same spot while playing the drums. This was truly the best treat we could all ask for. After nearly an hour and a half, I could not begin to think that their set was coming to an end. I will hold them to their word and hope to see them soon again! 

The post Live Review | Absu Conquers LA! appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Artist:  Amorphis
Album:  Circle
Genre:  Progressive Metal
Label:  Nuclear Blast
Release: April 19, 2013

Click for Full-Resolution

The last Amorphis album I have listened to chronologically was Silent Waters. What is found on Circle is basically the same concept, but they manage to keep things fresh. There is  no bad song on the album, though not every track might grasp your attention immediately. That being said, some of their finest and prettiest melodies ever are on here. It seems that several melodic metal bands have been exploring Japanese  melodies these days; think Wintersun’s Time. Amorphis follows suit, with the beautiful “Narrowpath” being one of the highlight tracks. A lovely flute intro that could easily be the voice of a nightingale is followed by crushing guitars that take it from there and develop it into one of their best songs ever. “A New Day” is another example, which serves as an excellent closing track. The band’s folk influence continues to show, and they continue to find new methods in doing so.

Songwriting should universally be considered the most important aspect of musicianship. Whether or not one can rightfully be called a musician should be based on their actual ability to make music. In this context, the guys in Amorphis are excellent musicians; they are ace songwriters, something that cannot be questioned. Their diverse musical background is constantly on display in their material, as they do a lot of stuff! They play their instruments very well, and utilize them in fun and creative ways. It’s always a real treat listening to an Amorphis album, because you never know what you’re going to get with each track. They take a song-by-song approach, execute it well, and don’t allow labels to limit their writing. One song might be composed of soothing piano melodies, while the track after could be popping out heavy riffs and vocalist Tomi Joutsen’s powerful death growls. Circle is like a box of chocolates; you never really know what you’re going to get but chances are it’s going to be sweet and savory.

Melody has always been the concept to Amorphis, so this is basically the same story, but a different version. That’s the keyphase: a different version. Amorphis always brings something special to the table, and they constantly push themselves to achieve excellence. The band is composed of a great group of songwriters who work with a very unique formula. They continue to exploit it well, and while the songs may be something in vein of their earlier work, Circle proves to be an additional solid effort to add to their extensive catalog, which goes to demonstrate that Amorphis is great at what they do. If the shoe fits wear it, and few can fill Amorphis’ big footsteps.

Highlight Tracks: Mission, Narrowpath, Enchanted by the Moon, A New Day

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Upon arriving to the venue, a sea of thrashers looked for scalpers to find a way into the venue. No one wanted to miss this show; indeed it was a show not worth missing. 

Even though the show started fairly early, many like myself rushed from work to make it on time. Holy Grail’s set could not be missed! As a local band, they had much pressure to showcase their true talent of a great Los Angeles Heavy Metal band. This band was a perfect opening band, getting straight into the crowd favorites and hyping everyone up. James-Paul Luna always surprises the crowd with his killer vocals. The harmonizing sweep arpeggios of Eli Santana and Alex Lee gets the pit in a twirl. This up-and-coming band will definitely continue to surprise us. 

The next band needs no introduction. Seriously, if you have not yet seen the new Vans 2013 Brand “Anthem” Parade commercial, you have been sleeping under a rock. “Municipal Waste is gonna fuck you up” and they sure did. As soon as they hit the stage, crowd surfer flew over the barracks. They played many favorites and left the crowd wanting more. The confetti canon made an appearance during their set, and even though I have seen them use it before, it still seems to leave me in complete awe. “Beer pressure”, “Unleash the Bastards” and “The Art of Partying” were some of the highlighted songs of their set.

This tour had such a great thrash lineup, but I was excited to see High on Fire on the bill. Matt, Jeff and Des make a great trio. Their set was killer, but they had a few technical difficulties due to them not having time for a sound check prior to the show starting. The Los Angeles thrashers didn’t seem to understand their music much. The crowd had died down during their set. I was a tad bit disappointed because they did such a good job and they played some of my favorites; “Rumors of War” and “Snakes for the Divine”. Nevertheless, they did expose themselves to a new crowd, and many went home with a new appreciation of High on Fire!

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The beast hit the stage next. Exodus, always brings the love of old school back to life! They rolled out many classics from the Bonded by Blood album such as; “A Lesson in Violence“, “Strike of the Beast” and “Piranha“. One of my favorites had to be “Toxic Waltz“. I could not contain my energy and ran straight into the moshpit to join all the other crazed fans. Exodus will forever be one of my all-time favorite Bay area thrash bands. They never cease to disappoint and always deliver the best and most energetic performance they can give.

As soon as Exodus walked off the stage, a sense of excitement and sadness hit. I was excited to watch Anthrax perform, but I knew the show was coming to an end. I was aware of Among the Living being played in its entirety, but was not expecting the many surprises we had during their entire set. The Los Angeles crowd surely did get a better treat than most destinations on the tour. The biggest surprise for me was when Chuck D of Public Enemy joined them on stage for “Bring the Noise”.  Chuck D was not the only guest that shared the stage with Anthrax, the legendary Slash of Guns N’ Roses also made an appearance during their AC/DC cover of “TNT”. This was a show that will forever be embedded into my memories. With such a killer lineup this year, I wonder what next year will look like, and if Metal Alliance can even be topped off…

The post Live Review | Metal Alliance 2013 – ANTHRAX, EXODUS, HIGH ON FIRE, MUNICIPAL WASTE, HOLY GRAIL…Seriously?! appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Artist:  Thy Art is Murder
Album:  Hate
Genre:  Deathcore
Label:  Nuclear Blast
Release: April 2, 2013 (North America)

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While I already sound pessimistic, I come to you with good tidings, Thy Art is Murder is more than your average Deathcore band. With bands like Whitechapel and Winds of Plague making some of the largest influences on the scene, and not to mention the gravity that the passing of Mitch Lucker (Suicide Silence) has had on people across the spectrum, it often becomes difficult to stand out.  After playing Hate a few times, I see that TAIM combines technicality with melody much like that of a talented Melodic Death Metal band.  But this is far from Melodeath, so before the elitist begin to rant, just know that you can expect something more than just breakdowns, repetitive down-tuned riffs, and generic gutturals. 

Personally I got some grindcore vibes throughout the album, which reminded me of the newer style of Cattle Decapitation.  The open track “Reign of Darkness” is approachable and interesting, with fast and brutal drums provided by Lee Stanton.  The guitar work is technical, with some sweeps and scales thrown in to add melody to the “in your face” approach to opening up the album.  “Shadows of Eternal Sins” has subtle hints of black metal thrown in which is a bit refreshing, since songs like these really begin to merge together is played consecutively.  “Defective Breed” sounds more like a Death Metal song, a bit reminiscent of Decrepit Birth, if there wasn’t already enough pulsating metal in Hate. 

The boys in Thy Art is Murder have brought us something a bit off the beaten path for those who followed the footsteps of Suicide Silence.  They turned back the clocks and brought out the original influences from Suffocation, and making their breakdowns more than just a change in time signature that sounds hardly more interesting than a lawn mower.  It could be something in the water, over there in the Southern Hemisphere, or it could be an understanding that music is only music if it has substance.  And substance shouldn’t just be borrowed, it should be made.  That’s what Thy Art is Murder has done, they’ve created Hate, a great attempt at refreshing a rapidly staling genre.  Expect these Aussies to bring forth hatred in a venue near you with the Nuclear Blast team behind them every step of the way.  Crack open a Foster’s and begin the Hate!

 Check out our interview with THY ART IS MURDER 

The band has a request for you!

Vote for us to open the Summer Slaughter tour 2013! If we win, it will be our first US tour which means we can all hang out and go fucking mental! Vote here: http://bit.ly/taim-summerslaughter

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This is the first album to feature new guitarist Brandon Ellis, and what a debut he makes! It’s worth pointing out that he’s only 20 years old, and he’s scarily good for his age; his phrasing is excellent and his technique is definitely right up there with the masters. Playing in a band with James Malone, who of course is a phenomenal player himself, will only benefit him; who knows how good he’ll be ten years down the road!  Case in point, the guitar-work on Unwelcome is absolutely brilliant. The leads on this album are simply killer, with tasty arpeggios being sweep-picked and tapped with squeaky clean efficiency. They even manage to slow it down at times, with some mighty-fine melancholic melodies on display. The riffs are a relentless onslaught of melodic technicality that you never get bored with. Guitar-wise, this album is definitely one of metal’s recent highlights, and is quickly becoming one of my personal favorites.

James Malone doesn’t give himself enough credit as a vocalist. In one of his online guitar lessons regarding his multitasking, he proclaims himself a felon at singing but he’s overlooking one important point: this is freaking death metal. Who the hell wants to sing? His harsh vocals are vicious and the fact that he can sing while playing guitar at the level that he does is monumental in itself. The drumming is predictably excellent, as it would have to be to suffice for a tech death band. It’s worth pointing out that the technicality lies more in the guitars than complex time signatures though.

There’s a good blend of juicy flavors to be found on Unwelcome.  King Diamond and Mercyful Fate have repeatedly been cited as a major influence to Arsis, and it rubs off on this release to a shocking degree. Many of the riffs are extremely reminiscent of King’s bands (on Sunglasses at Night especially), and it certainly adds to the overall darkness of the album. If King Diamond was trying to make a death metal album back in 1984, it might not have sounded far off from this. The level of atmosphere is surprising. Instead of sounding completely polished, Arsis retains a degree of old school death metal atmosphere, an element that is largely forgotten about by bands of this day and age. Needless to say, Unwelcome is surprisingly diverse for a technical death metal album.

relentless onslaught of melodic technicality that you never get bored with

Front to back, this is easily Arsis’ finest album. Everything about it is just so well done; the balance of songwriting and technicality, the excellent production, and perhaps most importantly, the guitar playing. Everyone in the band is excellent at their respective instruments of course, but it is really the tag-team of Malone and Ellis who steal the show here. Here’s to hoping this is the beginning of a long and shredtastic partnership. Arguably, the best heavy metal album released thus far in 2013, it should be picked up and enjoyed by any fan of extreme metal. And also by all those cookie cutter tech death bands on the scene right now (you know who you are). Take a leaf out of these guys’ book. This is how it’s done.

Highlight Tracks: Unwelcome, Choking on Sand, Sunglasses at Night, Martyred or Mourning

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Attic’s debut album, The Invocation, is an album that King Diamond could listen to, think he himself had written and then also performed on.  The songs presented here are filled with horror/occult inspired lyrics, a singer that sounds as every bit as strong or stronger than King Diamond, has well written songs and excellent guitar work.

Artist:  Attic
Album:  The Invocation
Genre:  Traditional Heavy Metal
Label:  Ván Records
Release: December 7, 2012

Click for Full-Resolution

I will be the first to admit I never was a very big fan of Mercyful Fate or King Diamond.  I was always attracted to the theme of the bands work and the great guitar work but it was the vocals, especially the ultra high pitch vocals, of King Diamond that always turned me off.  They never felt they fit in with the song or they just took me completely out of the mood that the song was striving for.  So with Attic I am actually surprised at myself that I enjoyed their debut so much.  Though Cagliostro’s vocals do hit the glass breaking levels that King Diamond does, they somehow seem to fit in better with the songs presented here, along with when he sings in a lower key.  Does this make me a hypocrite?  I’m not sure.  I have tried many times over the years to go back and listen to King Diamond and Mercyful Fate but just could not get into them.  Attic on the other hand, I found myself listening to multiple times, and though there are still times the high pitch vocals didn’t sit well with me I still enjoyed what I heard here. 

I think one of my favorite tracks on The Invocation is ‘Satan’s Bride’ where Cagliostro’s vocals hit all spectrums and really showcase his abilities.  The other tunes, ‘Funeral in the Woods’, ‘Join the Coven’ and ‘Ghost of the Orphanage’ all are strong tunes and boast the occult/ black magic themes fans of both Mercyful  Fate and King Diamond should instantly take to.

As for the music itself you will find The Invocation offers a classic Heavy Metal style that is straightforward, boasts talented guitar work, with an accessible sound, and catchy melodies/leads.  All packaged nicely together to make a nice metal record for all fans of the genre.

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