Dogface

"After last year’s glorious live album/DVD Swedish Empire Live, Sabaton return with a new studio album, Heroes. It’s their first effort following the mass exodus of four members who left and formed Civil War.Vocalist Joakim Broden and bassist Par Sundstrom rounded out the lineup with guitarists Chris Rorland and Thobbe Englund along with drummer Hannes Van Dahl. With plenty of touring under their belt, including the aforementioned live album, the transition into the studio was a smooth one.There are no big surprises on a Sabaton album. You know you are going to get bombastic power metal with lyrics based on war and battles. That’s exactly what you get with Heroes. It gets off to a potent start with “Night Witches,” and the momentum continues with “No Bullets Fly.”The songs have huge melodies, singalong choruses and top-notch musicianship, and the lyrics are about real-life war heroes. Those featured on Heroes range from American World War II hero Audie Murphy (“To Hell And Back”) to a Belgian infantry group that fiercely resisted the Germans (“Resist and Bite”) to Polish soldier Witold Pilecki, leader of the resistance movement in Auschwitz (“Inmate 4859“).Sabaton change things up with the arrangements, sometimes emphasizing big orchestral parts, and other times going more straightforward. “The Ballad Of Bull” comes about halfway through the album, a nice change of pace before things crank back up with “Resist and Bite.”Peter Tagtgren has worked with Sabaton for a while, and does another yeoman’s job behind the mixing board. The production is crisp and punchy with a big drum sound. The guitars shine through, mixing effortlessly with the symphonic and atmospheric elements.It’s a streamlined effort with little if any filler. The 10 tracks clock in at a brisk 37 minutes, with the longest song just over 4 and a half minutes long. Heroes shows that Sabaton have carried on nicely after the lineup changes, with their patented style and sound fully intact." - About.com

Remastered with 2 bonus tracks."The last quality album from Judas Priest's commercial period, Defenders of the Faith doesn't quite reach the heights of British Steel or Screaming for Vengeance, in part because it lacks a standout single on the level of those two records' best material. That said, even if there's a low percentage of signature songs here, there's a remarkably high percentage of hidden gems waiting to be unearthed, making Defenders possibly the most underrated record in Priest's catalog. Musically, it follows the basic blueprint of Screaming for Vengeance, alternating intricate speed rockers with fist-pumping midtempo grooves and balancing moderate musical sophistication with commercial accessibility. It's a craftsmanlike record from a band that had been in the game for a full decade already, but was still vital and exciting, and decidedly not on autopilot (yet). The record opens high-energy with the terrific "Freewheel Burning" and "Jawbreaker" before moving into lost anthem "Rock Hard Ride Free," the more complex "The Sentinel," the cold, oddly mechanized single "Love Bites," and the slightly darker "Some Heads Are Gonna Roll." Coincidentally (both were released the same year), there's a bit of Spinal Tap creeping into the band's approach on side two -- not just in calling a song "Heavy Duty," but also in the ridiculous rough-sex ode "Eat Me Alive," which comes off like an S&M-themed "Sex Farm" (albeit without the tasteful subtlety). It wound up getting the band in trouble with Tipper Gore's PMRC, though one wonders if it would have helped or hindered their cause that the song's sexual aggression was, in hindsight, not directed at women. At any rate, Defenders of the Faith charted only one spot lower than its predecessor, and was certified platinum. Hereafter, Priest would have significant difficulties adapting to the fast-changing landscape of heavy metal in the latter half of the '80s." - Allmusic Guide

Remaster with 2 bonus tracks."At the dawn of the '90s, Judas Priest were in sad shape: out of touch, seemingly creatively bankrupt, coming off the two worst albums of their career, and left for dead by many observers. Trying to right the ship, Priest jettisoned longtime producer Tom Allom and his tinny '80s sound, as well as the serviceable groove drumming of Dave Holland, and brought in veteran metal producer Chris Tsangarides and onetime Racer X skinsman Scott Travis. Most importantly, though, Priest stopped trying to be a stadium act in the midst of hair metal's heyday. All those changes come into sharp focus as soon as the title cut of Painkiller starts -- Travis' thunderous (and crisp-sounding) percussive maelstrom lights an immediate fire under the bandmembers' asses; Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing tear through a crushing, diabolical riff; and Rob Halford starts shrieking like a wicked witch, giving perhaps the most malevolent-sounding performance of his career. It's a startling statement of musical purpose that arrived seemingly out of nowhere, heralding a comeback that rivals George Foreman's. Once the leanest, meanest, darkest metal band on the planet, Priest were clearly giving up on the mainstream and instead embracing the thrash and speed metal underground they'd helped spawn. Not only do they come to terms with it here, they teach those whippersnappers a thing or two, marrying furious instrumental pyrotechnics to an unerring sense of songcraft. Spurred on by Travis' jazz-trained double bass assault, Painkiller never once lets up, slowing down only for the elegant menace of the prog-tinged "A Touch of Evil," and without an unmemorable tune in the bunch.That constant, balls-out intensity is a big reason why metal's younger generation has come to consider Painkiller perhaps the ultimate speed metal album. Older Priest fans will likely complain that the lyrics are silly, and they won't be wrong -- for all its fury, the title track is about the winged knight riding the monster motorcycle depicted on the front cover. However, there's a convincing argument to be made that this brand of comic book fantasy holds up better over time (and is more fun) than most would care to admit (and it can't be any sillier than, for example, members of Morbid Angel worshipping H.P. Lovecraft's fictional Ancient Ones as actual demonic entities). Thus, Painkiller's influence reaches further than many longtime fans might expect: traditionalist power metal bands wanting a harder edge adopted a good chunk of Painkiller's approach, yet its blend of chops and aggression also caught the ears of the emerging extreme metal movement, even inspiring a cover version of the title track on Death's final album, The Sound of Perseverance. In the end, Painkiller secured Judas Priest's legacy with the next generation of metal fans; it's the point where their contributions make the most sense to modern ears more attuned to metal extremes (and more affectionate towards lyrical clichés). It isn't the most important of the Priest classics, but it is the fastest, the meanest, and, well, the most f***ing metal album they ever released. Simultaneously a stunning revitalization and the last great album they would ever make, thanks to Halford's imminent departure." - Allmusic Guide

Fifth album from this (apparently) popular power metal band from Romania. The band is fronted by Ana Mladinovici, who has a very nice voice albeit with a slight accent. She doesn't have the range of Tarja - her voice is more along the lines of Sabine Edelsbacher of Edenbridge. Musically speaking the band sticks strictly to power metal. Definitely will appeal to Nightwish fans.

I'm not the biggest fan of speed metal but this one is surprisingly good.  Almah features former Angra lead vocalist Edu Falaschi.  The music has good intensity and movement.  Lots of hooks, staccato crunch and shredding solos.  I'm suprised at how melodic it is.  Falaschi was always a more than able replacement for Andre Matos and he does a great job here fronting his own band."Allow me to begin with a quote: "There comes a moment in a man’s life when it is necessary to make a radical decision in order to move forward with dignity and renewed energy”. This is from the statement that famed Brazilian Metal vocalist and composer, Edu Falaschi, released, upon his departure from home country metal giants, ANGRA. I had been a fan of them for a long time, and also Falaschi's newer solo work. His leaving of one of my favorite bands managed to turn from a disappointment to a renewal of hope for some of my favorite music, for he, if I may say, as one of the musicians I most genuinely admire (that title does not get thrown around) continued on with his solo band, ALMAH. The previous releases with the band, now a permanent act, marked a step away in style from his ANGRA, not only in compositional style, but also in vocals; no longer was he constrained to the high-pitched, soaring melodies 'required' by a power metal band; in ALMAH, as he has already said, he has found his niche.This brings me to the release of the band's latest release, "Unfold". Different again from the modern, progressive and heavy "Motion", this new piece appears to combine the elements most exquisite found in his previous solo work, and even some ANGRA-like hints. As I could have expected, it was a thrilling experience; and yet, not one piece of it was predictable. "In My Sleep" is one hell of an opening track, that is riled up with a technical drum roll by a monster on the battery, Marcelo Moreira, that explodes into a lightning-fast and energetic power metal riffage, that tends to (rightly) dominate most of the song. Falaschi once again proves his vocal abilities are nowhere near restricted, and floats between gruff baritones and soaring melodies; this kind of versatility is found on each of the album's exquisite tracks. Upon listening to the balladic "Warm Wind", I am pleasantly reminded of ANGRA's "Wishing Well", one of my favorite ANGRA tracks of all time. In part, this new piece is stylistically similar, but retains that slightly heavier, slightly more unpredictable, "ALMAH" touch, and is smoothed over by one of my favorite Falaschi vocal performances of all time."Raise the Sun" rightly chosen as the single to showcase "Unfold" in all its glory. It begins mid-tempo and graceful, but quickly ascends to a progressive grove rife with riff mastery that pops up from time to time, and contains some beautiful bass lines. Raphael is certainly an expert at his instrument, which is saying something, since ALMAH's former (and current ANGRA) bassist, Felipe Andreoli, is a bassist most influential to me. "Believer" once again pushes the musical envelop within this album, and is a brutally intricate and furious track, full of powerful, thrashy riffage, yet also infectiously catchy vocal melodies; one of my two most favorite track on the album. Finally, I cannot finish writing this up without touching on "Treasure Of The Gods", a meaty, nine-and-a-half-minute composition, made up of many passages that, while are stylistically different, amalgamate to create my other favorite piece. On this track, I hear some of the most complicated and intricate drum, bass and guitar interplay, and beautiful guitar solos, and stellar vocal belt-outs. This song is metal personified."Unfold" is one of the albums I have ever had the most pleasure writing about and listening to. It is a reminder to myself and other fans why Brazil is ultimately a metal powerhouse; after leaving ANGRA, continuing ALMAH was the best thing Falaschi could have done, and I hope 'that, with them, he continues to belt out more masterpieces in the future." - Metal Temple