Twilight Guardians - Wasteland 3.5/5
Reviewed: 1-28-05
Tracklist:
1. Weak generation
2. The next call
3. Search for grace
4. Angels
5. King of the wasteland
6. Time has come
7. Father's cave
8. Rocka Rolla
9. The wraith
10. Hellward
|
What an awesome cover! Totally original, and the perfect colors. I don't usually rave about covers, as there are so many good ones, but this one really caught my eye. It seems like over a year ago that I was expecting this CD to be released, and I eventually quit waiting. But after many delays, we finally get the 2nd CD 'Wasteland'. The Twilight Guardians debut 'Tales of the brave' got very regular spins back a few years ago, and still occasionally finds its way in my rotation. Their debut has always reminded me of the earlier Noctural Rites material, but a more recent comparison definitely has to be the band Gaia Epicus. I can't listen to the Gaia Epicus debut 'Satrap' without thinking of the Twilight Guardians debut.
With 'Wasteland', the band is a little better musically. Besides having a better production, they're more exciting, with a more polished sound, even reaching a sound closer to the likes of Sonata Arctica and Twilightning. There are many guitar and keyboard parts that will have fans of the mentioned bands satisfied for sure. Besides track 8 "Rocka rolla" (which I believe is a cover) that isn't really cohesive, all the songs are very good. I especially like the well played track 5 "King of the wasteland", the Twilightning sounding track 6 "Time has come", and track 7 "Father's cave" is superb, and easily competes with Sonata Arctica. But track 2 "The next call", and track 9 "The wraith" remind me of their debut, so don't worry about missing 'Tales of the brave'. The best song on the CD is thankfully the final track 10 "Hellward" (I love strong finishes!), as it shows off some fantastic guitar work.
One thing I really like about this CD, is that it's not continually fast. The song variety is perfect, with just the right amount of fast-paced songs, mid-paced songs, and even a few slower (though short) moments. This is an aspect that many bands struggle with (just read the recently reviewed Seventh One), and I'm glad that Twilight Guardians was able to accomplish this with just their 2nd CD. A great example for an idea of the song variety would have to be Sonata Arctica's 'Reckoning night'. In fact, that CD may be the closest comparison to 'Wasteland', so Sonata Arctica fans take notice!
CLINT
MORE REVIEWS... FULL REVIEWS
MORE REVIEWS BY CLINT... CLINT
MAIN -
A -
B -
C -
D -
E -
F -
G -
H -
I -
J -
K -
L -
M -
N -
O -
P -
Q -
R -
S -
T -
U -
V -
W -
X -
Y -
Z -
MISC
Email: metalcdratings@yahoo.com
