DESERT CALL

I'm not as blown away by this as many seem to be as i've seen a lot of 5 star ratings thrown at this album. Don't be mistaken though, this is very good and what seems to appeal to most is the Middle Eastern vibe along with the SYMPHONY X flavour. I don't think that flavour is very strong myself but i'm told their debut sounded a lot like that excellent American Power-Metal band.This is pretty heavy stuff and my favourite parts are the bass that are ground shaking at times. Oh yeah these guys are from Tunisia located at the Northern tip of Africa between Libya and Algeria.

"Forever And A Day" opens with vocal melodies as percussion joins in then the heaviness with that Middle Eastern flavour to boot. It does settle back as that chunky bass comes to the fore with vocals. It's heavy again after 4 minutes.Great opener. "Tempests Of Sorrows" kicks in right away and there's that Middle Eastern vibe, vocals come in around a minute. Some growly backing vocals too. I really dig this one a lot with it's Prog-Metal style throughout. Strings too in the background.

"Desert Call" is a top three for me. A heavy intro but it settles quickly with chunky bass. It kicks in again with vocals too this time.The bass show before 4 minutes is a real treat then the guitar solos then the vocals return around 5 minutes. I like the chorus on this one. "Madness" opens with the guitar buzzing with percussion and atmosphere.The vocals will come and go. Flute around 4 minutes and some ripping guitar after 5 minutes followed by the keyboards. Great track !

"Silent Cries" is another top three.It opens with the guitar putting on a show as it builds with drums pounding away. So good. A calm with vocals a minute in. It's heavy again as contrasts continue. Nice guitar solo 7 1/2 minutes in then a calm with acoustic guitar follows with reserved vocals and strings too. Piano ends it. "Memories" has a Middle Eastern vibe with piano then reserved vocals as strings join in. Nice bass though. I like the vocal melodies and guitar after 4 minutes.

"Ironic Destiny" hits the ground running as rough vocals join in. "No Turning Back" is another uptempo track and the riffs remind me of a bygone day where JUDAS PRIEST and the like ruled the world. Good song. "Empty World" is hard and heavy to start with synths over top.Vocals before a minute. Ripping guitar before 3 minutes.

"Shockwave" opens with heavy guitar riffs. Killer stuff right here as the keyboards then vocals come in as riffs continue. Love the crunchy guitar before 4 1/2 minutes just like the intro. It does settle right down with reserved vocals, piano and acoustic guitar before kicking back in again. Nice.It's very rare i'll give the bonus track a top three rating but nothing about this band or album is normal. "Hard Times" is heavy with background synths. A good headbanging tune.Vocals 2 minutes in. Great sound before 3 1/2 minutes. Nice guitar work follows. A Middle Eastern calm at 4 1/2 minutes. It's heavy again late.

A very solid 4 stars for this one. Prog-Metal fans need to check this band out.