Dark Moor - Beyond the Sea (2005)

Every day when I go to a gym, I let whole albums play through. This album came in rotation, and after really concentrating in listening to it, this band amazes me. Beyond the Duel, Houdini's Great Escapade, and Miracles are all really good tracks. The members of this band knew what they wanted when they first formed Dark Moor, and the result is everything of brilliance. You'll hear their name a lot in the power metal community and for all the right reasons, this band not only has potential, but it can whisk you away with some impressive music. Dramatic, heavy, great vocals... this band has it all and does a good job with it.


You can download the album HERE.

Winterborn - Farewell to Saints (2008)

Brilliant album. I'm enthralled by what this band has put out thus far, simply astonishing. It's what I'm currently listening to, and I can't even begin to tell you how professional this record really sounds. My favorite track of this album would have to be Emptiness Inside, the riffs sound so well placed. Nightfall Symphony is another track you should give an ear to, the tune is just out of hand, I love it!

If you're curious to the background of this band, they're from Finland. They dub themselves "The coldest finnish metal band" and when I heard the Cold Reality album some time ago, it really made me think of Winter and the Arctic. If you've ever told yourself "I want to listen to something new" then give Winterborn a listen. Very talented band, I must say.

Link coming soon.

Firewind - Allegiance (2006)

So today was one of those days where I was looking for something to listen to while I was driving. Nothing seemed to catch my attention, and then I saw this album, and decided to put it in. I've grown quite accustomed to it since burning it for myself, and its just something... i think its the guitar tones in this album, they just sound incredibly heavy, in a good way.

On my way to where I was going, I was just simply listening to the album just to have something to listen to. On my way back home though, I was tired, and I continued to listen to this album, but it wasn't until track 5 started playing, that i really started absorbing the music, and the keyboards just sound directly on point with the arrangements.

I've been following this band for a while, and they've definitely put out some really good albums, this one being one of my most listened to. The riffs are killer, with the heavy guitar tones underlining. I say this about a lot of bands, but when you pass this overall sound of brilliance, you really begin to notice it in other albums, and this is one of those that you can spin from beginning to end. I think i enjoy every song on this album, actually. Firewind... is just incredible.

You can download the album HERE.

Friendly reminder.

Just a reminder. All my downloads are either in 320kbps or V0/vbr, unless noted otherwise. Anything below and I will post the bitrate on the blog.

Death - Human (1991)

Really... its brilliant.

The technical aspect of Death will just wow you. Goes to show you that great bands have came out of Florida alongside Savatage and Kamelot. Chuck Schuldiner is the father of death metal, period. I mean really, Death.

The drumwork, the guitar work, the basslines, the vocals... it sounds vintage but with a new age sound of technicality that's just absolutely astounding. I will always say, people will never really understand the full body experience of music until they've learned an instrument, and appreciate the most experienced musicianship exhibition in bands like Death and more.

You can download the album HERE.

Kamelot - The Black Halo (2005)

Definitely one of my favorite albums. When I first heard Kamelot, I was aware that they were a power metal band, but it wasn't noted that their style is incredible. Roy Khan quickly became one of my favorite singers in metal, not to mention he studied opera in Norway.

The band's overall sound... I can't even describe it, its a mixture of several specific bands. At the top of my head, they sound like what Dream Theater would sound like if they were power metal. Excellent keyboards, drum work, bass lines and guitar work really propel this band's music.

If you haven't heard Kamelot, I would recommend this album to you. They are definitely incredible to hear, and proud to say they're in my Top 5 of power metal bands. Songs like When The Lights Are Down, The Haunting, and The Black Halo sound even more impressive live if you haven't seen their One Cold Winter's Night DVD. Actually, the song that turned me on to Kamelot was the self-titled, The Black Halo. I had always known about the band since high school, but never got into them until this year, and the first song I heard was that off of AOL Radio.

You don't have to be an avid metal fan to like this album, its eclectic in its own right, and true musicians can appreciate the beautiful arrangements this band contains in their music.

You can download the album HERE.

small hiatus, but I'm getting back into it.

I took a short hiatus from the album reviews to deal with personal life issues, and things are sorting itself out, so I will post album reviews more frequently from now on. You know me, I'm always listening to something. =D

Voivod - Voivod (2003)

This album... honestly, it captivates me. The unorthodox riffs of this band just blows my mind. I listen to bands like this, and it makes me wonder why these guys didn't hit it bigger than Metallica. To me, this band is ingenious. These guys are about to tour again for the first time since Piggy passed on, and I hope they pay a visit down here. Jason Newsted has been out with an injury, but he's coming back. Hopefully better than ever.

Its not necessarily thrashy in a sense, but its just a blur of riffs and great vocals that just makes you want to rock out. I first listened to this album when i burned it for myself, to have in my car. Listened to it once, became a complete fan. These guys have this "whatever" attitude that makes you think back to your high school days when you were trying to form a band. That's how it at least feels like to me, but this is definitely worth checking out from beginning to end. Hope these guys tour around here sometime, I'd love to see them.

You can download the album HERE.

speechless.

F*** YEAH.

Those secret Metallica lovers know what i mean.

i haven't wrote in a while, and I'm sorry, been contemplating constantly about life as of recent, just personal issues with myself, so i have to constantly re-evaluate my direction in life and what I'm going to do for a future. Eventually I'll overcome it, it just takes time for the economy to progress.

but, I have just the album review for you guys...

Opeth - Damnation (2003)

Another excellent album by one of the most creative bands I've ever heard. Ladies and gentleman, this is THE album to sink your thoughts into, and forget the day. Opeth hails from Sweden, and their natural genre is progressive death metal. Of course, their other albums are heavy and pretty metal, but this one stands out for me. This album shows the versatility of this band and their abilities in an all acoustic presence. I was easily impressed with Windowpane, as its such a beautiful intro and once it goes into the lyrics, the magic just takes you elsewhere.

Really, there's not much to say on this album, it just speaks for itself. Definitely something you might want to check out as it is promising.

You can download the album HERE.

Moonspell - Night Eternal (2008)

Another solid album by another great metal band. If you haven't heard Moonspell, then i suggest you pick up a copy of Night Eternal because they mean business.

I've listened to this CD through several times, and every song will definitely grab your attention. In case you haven't listened to Moonspell, I would highly suggest picking up this album to sample them out, as their 2008 release is a very promising one. Some people consider them black metal, but I don't think so, because black metal never sounded this good. The vocals are more tolerable than other black metal bands, and believe me , black metal is not my cup of tea. This band hails from Portugal, and they've been putting out decent albums since their debut.

There are quite a few notable songs that are worth the listen, one of them being Shadow Sun. The opening guitar riffs sound gloomy and mysterious, with the bass and drums just booming over the music creating a great overall sound. Pedro Paixao, the keyboardist, isn't necessarily a shredder, but his keyboard leads over the song are definitely haunting to listen to. Of course, there is a good share of some really heavy songs, like Scorpion Flower which is another notable track to listen to. The vocals on that track are great, possibly my favorite track on the CD.

I love Moonspell, honestly. I just don't understand why they're labeled as black metal when it sounds nothing like it, and I've heard enough black metal to justify an opinion on why I don't like it. Gothic metal, sure. This band can definitely pass as that. These guys don't wear corpse paint, or wear the spiky bracelets, and they don't need to. Their sound presence is good enough for any listener to give them an honest listen, as they're in the zone with their music. Spinning this whole CD in the player will definitely raise some eyebrows, but these guys rock that you can't help but put it loud. Of course, Moonspell might not be for everyone, but anyone who has an ear for good metal is suggested to pick up this album, as its more than just a beautiful album cover. You're in for a treat.

You can download the album HERE on Exxxposed.net. All my uploads will continue to be posted on that site until I choose otherwise, and registration is free.

Silent Force - Worlds Apart (2004)

Every day, i choose one album in particular and play it the whole way through so i can really appreciate every song. Today I'm reviewing Worlds Apart by Silent Force, one of the many great power metal bands out today.

Like many people, sometimes I can't make up my mind that i just turn on internet radio and let it play for me. One day i heard Ride the Storm off of this album, and what i heard was brilliant. I'm currently listening to the last track named after the title, and I can't help but have SNES nostalgia of games like Skyblazer and Actraiser. Seems fitting that those games feel like they co-exist with power metal, and let me tell you, its heavy stuff. The riffs are definitely creative, the drumming is right on point, solos and keyboards are crazy, and the vocals are ample. This is my second time today playing this CD through, and like a lot of power metal lyrics, its captivating. I do enjoy listening to all kinds of heavy metal, and this is one of the reasons power metal is widely popular, because of bands like Silent Force.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is one CD I highly recommend letting play through, each song will engulf you in its own magic. For metal enthusiasts, I extend my suggestions on picking up this album and giving it a listen, because Silent Force will not disappoint you. Songs like Ride the Storm and Worlds Apart will definitely satisfy your metal urges.

You can download the album HERE.

An introduction.

My name is Danny.

Something i say often is, if there is one thing i love more than anything in this world, is music. Over the years, I've learned to appreciate music of all sorts. I'm 23 now, but i feel like I've heard a lot, and another thing i love is talking about music. My preference of genre is metal. As much as it would satisfy the musical elitists about what sub-genre I speak of, I don't feel like breaking it down. The problem today is that everyone wants to categorize every band individually. Now we have "core" suffixes to music genres, i mean does that not sound ridiculous? How does one define "core" anyway when there's different kinds of "cores?"If it sounds like metal, I'm calling it metal. Lately I've been listening to a lot of power metal, but back in high school, i was into all the thrash metal. From bands like Coroner, Mercyful Fate, Exodus, Kreator... there were so many bands I was into. One of them being Iced Earth, and boy did that band change my perspective on a lot of music, but that's another story.

Now that I'm older, I figure my way of contributing to music aside from playing instruments, is writing about some pretty good albums I've heard over the years. Of course, its not limited to metal, but you can expect a large share of metal albums being reviewed. (Hey, its my blog, why not?)

Like i said before, music is my first love, at least till the right woman comes along lol. So I'd like to introduce Danny's Comet, an album reviewing blog for everyone who appreciates music as much as I'd do. =)