Madog
Fairytales of Darkness
6.2
The power metal deluge continues here at MetalReview.com, and with so much of it coming in, we can’t wait for one or two guys to cover it all, so here I sit. I rarely listen to power metal, so I won’t be dropping names left and right, but I’d like to think that I can recognize quality. Madog may hail from Austria, but they sound more like their metal neighbors to the north, Germany. You know the sound, power metal in the vein of Blind Guardian and Helloween, with the occasional speed metal moments. You don’t have to travel far to hear their speed metal leanings, just try the opening of the first real track on the album, “Fairy of Darkness”. (Now while I don’t really have a problem with the music within, including the word “fairytale” anywhere in an album title is not encouraged.)
For those of us that aren’t power metal fanatics, the vocals usually make or break the band. In Madog’s case, Hansi Zedrosser’s vocals stay just masculine enough to keep me listening. His brother Otto (same last name, bio is in German, so I’m not totally sure about the relation) handles the bass, leaving all the riffing to Hansi and Alex Humer, who certainly know the ins and outs of power metal guitarwork. Chris' drumwork seems a little more creative than usually seen on power metal releases. Otto seems to have gotten the short end of the stick in the studio though, as the recording is a bit light on the low-end.
As for the songs, some are fast and fun (“Destiny”), while others are more standard folky/ballad-type fare (“Dream of the Mountain”). Alex occasionally breaks out thrashy riffs that get my head banging, like in “The Hunter” and “One Thousand Feet”. There’s certainly some competitive music on display here, but they aren’t breaking any ground lyrically. Just check out the all-too-common song titles like “Valhalla”, “Phantom of the Opera”, and the fantastically-cliché “Heart of Dragonsteel”!!!
Basically what Fairytales of Darkness amounts to is a decent power metal release that is more in line with Grave Digger and older Blind Guardian, rather than the overly flowery stuff like Stratovarius. For starters, no keyboards! The power metallers among us might want to check out Madog if they just can’t get enough of that dragonslaying goodness.
