AFM
2007
1. Phoenix Rising
2. Warrior's Cry
3. Lost And Gone
4. Keeps me Burning
5. Take Me Over
6. I'm Gonna Win
7. Watching The World
8. Call The Gypsy
9. Trust In You
10. Masterplan
11. Enemy
12. Heart Of Darkness
Upon hearing Jorn had left this band doubt immediately filled my mind as to Masterplan's future. A well respected and sought after vocalist in metal, Jorn Lande brings a powerful presence to any band with his powerful emotive deliveries. However, when I heard the replacement announced as none other than Mike DiMeo of former Riot fame my doubts were laid to rest as far as the vocals went. A perfect replacement really as Mike DiMeo could practically be Jorn's vocal twin. Very similar stylistically and one vocalist I'd rank just as high in the grand scheme... which there aren't many of. But then of course Uli Kusch also departed, leaving this band without one of it's founders and once again on uncertain ground.
Listening to this album it didn't immediately hook me like the last release did and the musical direction seems to have shifted a bit back towards the first album. The melodic rock hooks that really grabbed me on Aeronautics and those big standout choruses seem absent in favor of more direct and upbeat song structures. It's not really the vocals that have changed in the choruses but more how they're arranged within the songs and most of these songs don't seem to touch those catchy arrangements that largely made the last album for me. There are a few exceptions in the form of Lost And Gone, Keep Me Burning, and the very 80s sounding I'm Gonna Win which reminds me of something that could've been done by Survivor for a Rocky soundtrack. Bit of cheese there maybe but damn powerful in my opinion. All those 3 are very strong and worthy of the last album. Much of the rest of the album though is just kinda samey in their straight ahead nature and similar pace, without much in terms of hooks or power. There are no really weak tracks here I don't think... just less standouts.
If you like sort of happy, uplifting sort of power with a tendency towards being upbeat and melodic than this is good enough to check out, but I'd recommend picking up Aeronautics over this one if you haven't. It is probably worth checking out for DiMeo era Riot fans though since there are some parallels there. Not a bad release by any means as indicated by the rating but, I just can't help being a little disappointed considering the last album. Hope for this band's future certainly does remain as they have found a vocalist who can slide easily into their sound and will deliver for them live.
Highlights: Keep Me Burning, Lost And Gone, I'm Gonna Win
Rating - 3.5/5
2. Warrior's Cry
3. Lost And Gone
4. Keeps me Burning
5. Take Me Over
6. I'm Gonna Win
7. Watching The World
8. Call The Gypsy
9. Trust In You
10. Masterplan
11. Enemy
12. Heart Of Darkness
Upon hearing Jorn had left this band doubt immediately filled my mind as to Masterplan's future. A well respected and sought after vocalist in metal, Jorn Lande brings a powerful presence to any band with his powerful emotive deliveries. However, when I heard the replacement announced as none other than Mike DiMeo of former Riot fame my doubts were laid to rest as far as the vocals went. A perfect replacement really as Mike DiMeo could practically be Jorn's vocal twin. Very similar stylistically and one vocalist I'd rank just as high in the grand scheme... which there aren't many of. But then of course Uli Kusch also departed, leaving this band without one of it's founders and once again on uncertain ground.
Listening to this album it didn't immediately hook me like the last release did and the musical direction seems to have shifted a bit back towards the first album. The melodic rock hooks that really grabbed me on Aeronautics and those big standout choruses seem absent in favor of more direct and upbeat song structures. It's not really the vocals that have changed in the choruses but more how they're arranged within the songs and most of these songs don't seem to touch those catchy arrangements that largely made the last album for me. There are a few exceptions in the form of Lost And Gone, Keep Me Burning, and the very 80s sounding I'm Gonna Win which reminds me of something that could've been done by Survivor for a Rocky soundtrack. Bit of cheese there maybe but damn powerful in my opinion. All those 3 are very strong and worthy of the last album. Much of the rest of the album though is just kinda samey in their straight ahead nature and similar pace, without much in terms of hooks or power. There are no really weak tracks here I don't think... just less standouts.
If you like sort of happy, uplifting sort of power with a tendency towards being upbeat and melodic than this is good enough to check out, but I'd recommend picking up Aeronautics over this one if you haven't. It is probably worth checking out for DiMeo era Riot fans though since there are some parallels there. Not a bad release by any means as indicated by the rating but, I just can't help being a little disappointed considering the last album. Hope for this band's future certainly does remain as they have found a vocalist who can slide easily into their sound and will deliver for them live.
Highlights: Keep Me Burning, Lost And Gone, I'm Gonna Win
Rating - 3.5/5
No comments:
Post a Comment