Ashes Of Ares - Ashes Of Ares |
Published September 02 2013
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The Messenger* |
| Genre | Heavy Metal |
Matt Barlow
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Vocals
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| Tracks | 10 |
Freddie Vidales
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Guitar
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| Running time | 46 Min. |
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Guitar
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| Label | Nuclear Blast |
Freddie Vidales
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Bass
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| Release | 03 September 2013 |
Van Williams
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Drums
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| Country | USA |
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Keyboard
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| Producer | Jim Morris | ||
| Similar artists | Iced Earth | ||
Former Iced Earth vocalist and legend Matt Barlow and also touring bassplayer Freddie Vidales have teamed up with ex-Nevermore drummer Van Williams to form heavy metallers Ashes Of Ares. In my eyes this is possibly more a project than a hard working, sweat dripping metal band with a formula of dominant future plans and world dominion.
With Barlow's recognizable and honorable voice, it's hard to not find similarities with his former band no matter how much I try not to. His vocal melodies, his crushing approach and his harmonies are still monumental and this sets strong prints on the entire record. The actual music, mostly created by Vidales, is pretty much straightforward and direct heavy metal, somewhat sprung in the veins of Iced Earth, yet less epic and intense in general.
When deriving from other well-known bands, it sometimes seems hard to find a new distinct and perfected direction, as you tend to get somewhat stuck in your previous work and foundations, and this record will definitely attract many Iced Earth fans. Williams' drumplay feels more loose than ever and without definite restrictions though, but most songs were already written when he joined the ranks.
We are presented ten songs that pretty much all stay on a solid level. No fillers whatsoever and with a few awesome tracks such as The Messenger, Dead Man's Plight and the semi-ballad The Answer. It's a rather pumping and forceful experience with a cool bassplay and with powerful riffs and accurate licks that I find attractive.
It's heavy almost all through with a few spaces to get
some air to fill your lungs and I believe this outfit is here to stay
and I totally look forward to see these songs performed live, hopefully
in a not so distant future. I can't recall any of these guys ever getting
much credits to the songs in the past, besides the lyrics, hence definitely
a way better release than I expected. 7 chalices to a solid debut album
from a few veterans on the scene.
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Performance
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Originality
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Production
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Vocals
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Songwriting
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6 |
3 |
6 |
9 |
7 |
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Summary
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7 chalices of 10 - Tobbe |
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