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Formed from the ashes of a band that covered songs by the likes of the mighty Crimson Glory and King Diamond gets the thumbs up in my book.
So what of this newish creation? Well, put it this way: their current employment when not in the band includes staff members from the Guitar Institute (Charlie Griffiths and Martin Goulding), bass player from Carl Palmer's touring band (Dave Marks), and drum teacher Nick Lowczowski. Dutchman Jos Geron, the former vocalist with Matrix completes the line-up. Played out on many levels, sequences and layers with a sonic, rasping styled dark thread is generally the essence of the album. Technically in your face, sometimes smothering on occasion. Personally, I'm not a great fan of effects on vocals and here with the nature of the band and what they are trying to achieve, this type of vocal gets a relative good work out. I prefer the more natural and cleaner vocal like on "Division Man", if that could be said, because the vocal style might not be what you will expect, verging on a crisp death abrade sometimes ("Father Pyramid"). A semi-acoustic boulder drops into the mix with a splash quite unexpectedly in the shape of "Life Of Gear" and is most endearing with exceptional guitar work.
Last song is a lengthy four-part work out "From Space To Time", striking a progressive metal chord at the start and developing and enveloping into a casket of widdly guitar, jazzy periods, quieter moments. you get the picture.
On some of it Geron sounds a bit like a cross between Midnight from Crimson Glory fame and Udo Dirkschneider. Generally an unknown quantity, but I reckon should be in with a shout of success.
Richard Thompson : PowerPlay Magazine