Revoltons
Night Visions
7
If I were to describe Power Metal in just a few words… I’d call it a big fucking brawl.
Yeah that’s it. Laugh all you want… because I’m not talking about Blind Guardian and Edguy rolling around and pulling each other’s hair to the sound of Queensryche… I’m talking about a musical genre saturated with Swedes, Germans, Brits, Italians and the occasional Yankee, all simultaneously shredding 3000 notes a minute, caressing keyboards and screaming like a symphony of mass-castration.
Sure. To some of you it’s all a bit… gay. But succeeding in the power metal world takes more than long hair, a rare Suffocation tee and the ability to say “Fuck Yeah! Brutal Man!”. To summarize: It’s a turbulent dimension of endless prodigies waging a constant war for musical domination.
Italian stallions Revoltons might not be the most distinctive band in the world, and LMP (I’m sorry to say) do not have the most saintly reputation for promoting the bands they sign. Nonetheless, Night Visions has managed to find its way here to me and let me start by saying that I’m pretty fucking impressed. It’s not ‘sick shit’ and neither will it hold the slightest sliver of interest for any of you who could be described as Morbid Angel cowboys, so save some trouble and fuck off.
Night Visions, is an entrancing yet technical fusion of melody and sorrowful emotions. There are more than a few moments that spell Dream Theater, yet unlike the self-proclaimed gods of musical innovation… the musicianship doesn’t alienate the most important part… the Metal.
After a short, atmospheric prologue (“Endless Pain”) I have to admit that my face was contorted with a look of slight disappointment. “Cell of Death” may have more than its fair share of decent instrumental touches, but the vocals hit some pretty ugly notes, leaving the slight taste of ‘sour power’(metal) lingering. Singer Andro, had been long forgiven for his early vocal blundering by the time I hit track 3, “Hands of Magellano”. Some soulful keyboards (Yeah that’s right br00ts. Keyboards. Flee.) accompanied by confident skin-bashing and precisely timed guitars gradually build into ye old cavalry charge as the gallop is unleashed and Revoltons make it clear that Night Visions is in fact a Power Metal album rather than a circus of musical arrogance.
Later tracks are similar, yet not repetitive. Revoltons seem to stick to a breed of songwriting that makes each song interesting but one which at the same time, stays true to a particular style. “The Old Walls” (Track 6) focuses more on the instruments and employs some pretty fucking solid riffery an all fronts while “Time for Worlds Inside” makes a much heavier approach, with full use of the vocal end and experiments with a harsher singing style.
Yeah it’s melodic… but something people in metal tend to forget… that melody does not make music ‘gay’. It makes it music.
I seriously doubt that Night Visions will find itself to your local record store. In fact, I seriously doubt that it’ll find its way outside of Germany or Italy… but if the more determined amongst cast your eyes far and wide in search for some decent power metal then I seriously recommend that you pick this up.
Don’t worry. The shouts of “Arse-Bandit” are only temporary.
