CRYSTAL VIPER - review added 18th October 2010
Album Review: Legends (2010)
For fans of: Power Metal... and Doro
We last looked at Polish band Crystal Viper - Marta Gabriel on guitar and vocals, Andy Wave on guitar, Tom Woryna on bass, and 'Golem' on drums - only a few months back. They released a live album in June 2010, and we came away fairly nonplussed. There was nothing wrong with the release, but it didn't excite like any good live album should.
This time, however, Crystal Viper have a full studio album (their 3rd) to tempt us with. Boasting cover artwork by Chris Moyen (Slayer, Trivium), guest musicians Stefan Kaufmann (U.D.O., ex-Accept), Mat Sinner (Primal Fear, Sinner), Rhino (ex-Manowar) and more, plus a cover of a classic Accept track, things are looking good.
The musicianship is tempting too. The sound is a mix of classic power, battle and heavy metal - think Manowar, Helloween, Judas Priest...the usual subjects - with a dose of modern speed metal thrown in. The songs themselves are perfectly decent in a slightly-too-cliched way. The bugbear for me is Marta Gabriel's vocals. I don't hate her sound as such, but she has a very strong accent and often sounds more like an enthusiastic teenage boy than a strapping grown-up woman. It's a shame because I really want to like this album, but I often find the vocals are just too off-putting to glean any real enjoyment.
The album definitely makes sense in places. The racy 'Night Of The Sin' is the best example, and perhaps the only song where the whole track holds my full attention. The Iron Maiden-esque 'Blood Of The Heroes' isn't bad either.
I suspect there are people out there who will have no problem with the vocals on "Legends", and for them this album may well hit the spot in a big way. For me, although the musicianship and production are first class, I just can't get my head around the strength of the pronunciation on the lyrics. Ah well...
Check out... Doro instead...?
Track List:
01. The Truth (Intro)
02. The Ghost Ship
03. Blood Of The Heroes
04. Greed Is Blind
05. Sydonia Bork
06. Goddess Of Death
07. Night Of The Sin
08. Secret Of The Black Water
09. A Man Of Stone
10. Black Leviathan
11. TV War (ACCEPT Cover)
Label: AFM Records
Artist's website(s): Crystal Viper | MySpace
