Hellenic Metal |

Battleroar - Age Of Chaos

Battleroar´s second output was released in the year 2005 through Black Lotus Records. The band can be named as Greece´s best traditional, epic metal band and managed to get well-known in the European scene with just two albums. This status is not a miracle, but the outcome of strong releases such as Age Of Chaos. The album sounds very complete, all songs form a kind of musical unity, even if Age Of Chaos is not a concept allbum. The band´s biggest influences are U.S. bands like Manilla Road, Omen or early Manowar. If you like these bands, you surely will like Battleroar! Highlights are not easily to mention, maybe Vampire Killer, Tower Of The Elephant or my personal favourite Calm Before The Storm. The band used many additional instruments to enrich their sound, instruments as horns, violins etc. There are also some guest musicians on Age Of Chaos, Mark Shelton from Manilla Road, Mark Cross (ex-Helloween, Firewind) and Bob Katsionis (Firewind, Nightfall) who played all keyboard parts. Let me mention that the band´s singer is not a Greek, but an Italian called Marco Concoreggi. His voice sounds good, luckilly he doesn´t sing like a Power Metal vocalist without balls, but in my opinion he could add a certain aggressiveness into his vocals, to make it more variable. Even if Battleroar´s music style is often pronounced dead from the press, the Epic Metal scene is well and can only become stronger with releases such as Age Of Chaos!

Written by Skariotis

Bob Katsionis - Turn Of My Century

Bob Katsionis is one of the best musicians the Greek scene has to offer. He contributed not only as a member of Nightfall, Septic Flesh and Firewind, he also releases solo albums. His first solo album is Turn Of My Century, which was released in the year 2002 by Finnish Lion Music. It´s purely an instrumental album without vocals, but with 100% Bob Katsionis. Expect an album with seventeen songs of progressive, playful and frisky Heavy Metal. Bob composes and performs his songs on the the guitar and the keyboard. Don´t expect usual metal songwriting here. In addition to the normal song basis, every song is packed with solos, no matter if its a speedy guitar solo or a dazzling keyboard solo! Here you will get the full blast. Luckily there are often calm parts in between, so you don´t need a dose of Aspirin to get through the album. And if that´s not enough, there´s still room for good songwriting, which is partly influenced by oriental harmonies and melodies. You can´t escape from middle-eastern influences in Greece, they are everywere, on the TV and on the fucking radio. Bob did the best with this nightmare, he added it into his songwriting. Prog-fans and musicians, invest blindly!

Written by Skariotis

Bob Katsionis - Imaginary Force

Bob Katsionis is a young guitar and keyboard player. He´s also in Nightfall and Firewind and was the keyboard player on the last Septic Flesh tour. Imaginary Force is his second solo album. It was released in 2004. On the drums is Fotis Bernardo, who is in Nightrage and he was also on the last Septic Flesh tour. Bass player is Stavros Giannakopoulos. There are some guest musicians too on Imaginary Force. The music is progressive Heavy Metal without vocals. Most albums of skillful musicians are often very boring, but Bob Katsionis manages to write amazing songs, being one of Greece´s most progressive and best musicians! Just listen what the guy is doing with his guitar AND his keyboard! It makes really fun to listen to his stuff. He also seems to be a funny guy by making a song called Ouzo and writing a hymn for adult movies, calling it St. Perverts. He also incorporates a Tsifteteli, oriental Turkish dance music, into a Heavy Metal song! The album features a video clip of Scary Groovy, a song of the last album and some bonus video material of Bob. There you can see how he is playing exactly the same weird melody with one hand on the guitar and with the other hand on the keyboard. This guy is just crazy!

Written by Skariotis

Celestial Ode – Celestial Ode

This is a self-released CD which contains five songs of Power/melodic Thrash Metal. It is Celestial Ode´s debut release and came out in 2001. The riffing is good and reminds the U.S. scene of the 1980´s (early Annihilator...). There is even an old-styled ballad (The Loser) besides the faster songs. The sound is also very solid for a self-released debut. Sadly, the vocals cannot convince at all. They are sometimes so high, they sound almost like from a whining dog. So you will find good (strong guitar work) and bad (vocals) elements on Celestial Ode, I hope the good parts will prevail until the next release!

Written by Skariotis

Dark Nova - The Dark Rhapsodies

The Dark Rhapsodies is the debut album of the Power Metal band Dark Nova. It was released in the year 1993 from the Greek label Molon Lave Records. It features eight songs of traditional metal with an artistic/progressive approach, the use of a piano and many guitar solos. This means also, that the band played a style of metal that was not very welcomed by the international scene, ´cause at that time everybody was looking for the next fucked up grunge band from Seattle. The traditional metal scene, once big and beloved by many, shrank into the underground status. It was not easy for many bands to promote their stuff, and many split up. The same problems must have faced Dark Nova, whose album is somehow two-edged. Despite very skillful bandmembers and many good song parts, riffs, melodies etc., there are not many songs on the debut, which sounds overall good. Songs like The Way In or Avenger are too few on The Dark Rhapsodies. These songs are the most tightened, fusing both, good musical skills and good songwriting. There are often good parts on many songs, but they are followed by strange rhythm and tempo changes and annoying solos. Unlike many traditional bands in the early 90´s, unlike many other greek bands from Molon Lave label, Dark Nova didn´t split up, but returned in the late 90´s with their second album!

Written by Skariotis

Dark Nova - Sivilla

Dark Nova released their third album in 2005 through Black Lotus Records. They refreshed the line-up with some new members and released Sivilla, maybe their best album to this day. The chaotic songwriting of the debut was tightened, now the song structures are up to date and the songs still have this certain progressive approach of the band´s past. With Michael Choulakis they found a charismatic singer. The twelve songs of Sivilla are presented by a band, which eventually found its own style, due to good riffing and a great orchestration built around these riffs! I don´t think that Sivilla can disappoint any fan of traditional/progressive Power Metal! Personal Highlights are Come Into My Nightmare, Sivilla, Reach For The Sky and Say No More.

Written by Skariotis

Deceptor - The Legend

Deceptor was a Power Metal band which existed from 1989 until 1992. The Legend is not a normal album but a compilation of some demos, promo tapes and live recordings. It was released by Unisound Records, ten years after the split of the band, with a cheap looking cover and without lyrics. The first five songs are from their demo from 1989. The band presents us their Thrash Metal-influenced Power Metal with good songs like Too Late For Heroes, The War That To Persons Make and the half-ballad Nemesis (reminds me Metallica´s Sanitarium). The sixth track, White Fatal Lady, is from the promo tape 1990, the songs seven until nine are from a pre-production demo from 1991. These songs are on the same level like the first five, but more complex, reminding me early Nevermore.The last five tracks are live recordings from 1991. I Can Feel The Power and Damned Angel are good examples, that the band was able to keep easily the high musical standard on the stage. I want to single out the skills of the musicians, all play on a high level, especially the guitar players. Unusual for a Greek Power Metal band for that time were the awesome vocal abilities of singer Ioannis Koutselinis, who had no problems to compete to well-known metal vocalist. In my opinion he sings too high-pitched, I was never a fan of such vocals, but he is no doubt good in what he is doing. After the split of Deceptor he moved to England and formed the band Biomechanical. Today he is known as John K. and the media compares him with Rob Halford. Well, he did this years before in Deceptor! I wonder why no label noticed this potential.

Written by Skariotis

Denial Price - Farewell Within Remains

Denial Price had to walk a long road until this mini CD was ready to be released in the year 2000. The band was formed in 1986, released a demo in 1990 and split up. Some years later, they reformed, recorded in 1993 the material of this release and split up again. In 2000 they gathered again and released finally the recorded songs from 1993 as Farewell Within Remains mini CD. The CD features five songs. Although it was recorded in the early 1990´s, don´t expect to listen to 90´s metal. The songs sound as they were recorded not in 1993 but in 1980, regarding both, the songwriting and the production. The band plays a very traditional form of early Heavy Metal, this stuff could have been on a NWOBHM-sampler as well! Just listen to the opener Serpent´s Curse and you´ll understand. The songwriting is interesting and not bad or boring at all. Sadly, the vocals are just another good example of the weak vocal work of Greek Heavy/Power Metal bands. This time the vocals are not just too high, but sometimes also sloping badly (not to forget the obligatory bad articulation of Greek singers). The band nowadays prepares to record its first full-length album (pre-production was already in 2003). If the band stays true to its tempo, expect a 2010 release date!

Written by Skariotis

Dol Ammad - Star Tales

Dol Ammad is the realization of the musical vision of Thanasis Lightbridge. Star Tales was released in 2004 through Black Lotus Records. It´s not really a band with some members who play some instruments. Star Tales can be described as the music for a huge, fantastical Science Fiction movie. Dol Ammad combines like no other band the power of Heavy Metal and spacy, futuristic keyboard music. Let me say that there is no vocalist in Dol Ammad, but a choir of six men and six women, all skilled choir singers, who are making the whole vocal work. The outcome of all elements combined together is Dol Ammad, or Electronica Art Metal, as the band states its sound. The drums are played by Alex Holzwarth, the drummer of the Italian band Rhapsody. Picking a single song as good example or as highlight of the album is nearly impossible (maybe Master Of All?), as the album is one real, huge piece of art (duration is more than one hour)! The artwork and the booklet emphasise this, there are some really great-looking, multi-coloured space-pictures on it. So now we all have to wait until somebody will start to film the movie for this music. But I bet that before that happens, Dol Ammad will release their second opus (and I must buy me a laser-gun till then)!

Written by Skariotis

Dol Ammad - Ocean Dynamics

This is already the second album of the Greek Space Art Metallers Dol Ammad. It was released in the year 2006 from the band´s own label Electronicartmetal Records. Mastermind behind this band is synth-man Thanasis Lightbridge. Everybody who knows the debut album Star Tales, knows what he will experience while listening to Ocean Dynamics. All others (who are not aware of the debut, surely the most), will explore an album which will blast the well-known bonds of Power Metal. The music style of Dol Ammad is unique, they simply call it Electronica Art Metal. Some will say this is not metal anymore, but that´s not true, ´cause the base is and remains Heavy Metal. Heavy Metal, which is enriched very much with symphonical, electronic sound samples and with a huge choir as vocalist, instead of one singer. What differs from the debut album? Well, the choir is even bigger now, and the main theme of the music is dealing not only with space themes but also with oceanic topics. And so the album starts with a huge song called Thalassa Dominion - A Space Opera In 4 Acts. It features many calm parts, featuring mostly electronic, non-metal elements and some will ask, where is the metal in Electronica Art Metal? He has to wait until the last part of the song, when the band incorporates even blastbeat parts in the songwriting! On the next songs, Dol Ammad continues as everybody expected, with fast, almost thrashing Power Metal on the song Solarwinds. But again, the band interrupts the metal feeling with the track Descent, which can be described as some kind of spacy chill-out music. Lava is bringing back the metal (for our purist friends...) and it continues on Aquatic Majesty, which features as the only song on Ocean Dynamics besides the choir, normal vocals from a guest vocalist. It is DC Cooper, the singer of the German band Silent Force, who contributes very good clean vocals, fitting perfectly to the song! The best song is for me Liquid Desert, due to its great riffs. Again, just like on the debut, the album features many great illustrations, which fit well to the whole atmosphere of the songs. Are there any bad things on the album? Maybe the mix, ´cause the instruments, especially the guitars, are mixed way too silent in comparison with the volume of the choir and the electronic samples. So the metal elements of Ocean Dynamics sound a bit too weak. There is surely a better guitar sound possible! The problem for the band is, that there is no certain target audience for this kind of music. Too much metal for electronic fans and too much samples and synths for stubborn metalheads. If you call yourself a music fan, open for many different music styles, get your copy of Ocean Dynamics! I promise you, you never heard a band like Dol Ammad before!

Written by Skariotis

Elwing - War

Elwing is an epic Power Metal band. War is their second album, it was released in 2005 from Black Lotus Records. It is nowadays very difficult to succeed as a Greek Power Metal band, first of all, there are so many bands out there, which play a similar style, not only in Greece, but generally in Europe. So there´s the risk of not getting noticed by the press and the fans. But both should check Elwing, not because Elwing has something really new to give, but because they truly are above many bands of that genre. They simply know to write good music. They manage to mix elements of bands like Iced Earth, Manowar and Iron Maiden, putting also an epic touch and their own characteristics into their sound. The guitarists are great, the vocals of Sakis are deeper as other singers of that style, so there are no high-pitched, ball-less screams. Really strong voice. The production is also very good, there are no arguments against the purchasing of War, if you´re into epic metal. Than you will listen to the epic Marching To Glory, I´ll Live Forever, Sons Of Revenge, Fly Away, the Iced Earthish At The Gates and Lost Humanity, and the semi-ballad Blood On My Hands. Elwing surprised me with this release, ´cause Greece´s Power Metal bands are mainly known for their enthousiasm and mediocrity. I didn´t expect such a strong record! Thumbs up!

Written by Skariotis

Horizon's End – Concrete Surreal

Concrete Surreal is the second album of Horizon’s End. It was released in 2001 by Greek traditional metal label Steel Gallery Records. It features nine songs with a total duration of over 67 minutes! The band’s music is progressive Heavy Metal, in the vein of Fates Warning or Dream Theater. On every song the band members show their talents, not only just as musicians - a tenacious proof of their skills would be pretty boring - but also as songwriters, as the progressiveness didn´t kill the songs. The music is indeed progressive, but the songs remain coherent. They are mostly calm and slow, giving the needed space to the musicians for their brilliant performance. The keyboard/piano plays a dominant role and is equally to the guitars and bass embedded in Horizon’s End music. With Vassilios Topalides the band has a singer who is more than just satisfying, so the big deficit of Hellenic metal bands, average Power Metal vocals, can be avoided here! His performance is the “cherry on the cake”. I think, a bit more aggressiviness would have enriched their sound, of course progressive metal fans don’t give a fuck for that and so I can recommend Concrete Surreal to every fan of the mentioned genre. It will surely need some spins on the player of normal metal heads, it’s a beautiful, not an easy album.

Written by Skariotis

Mystery - Mystery

Mystery, which is also called Angelo Perlepes´ Mystery, ´cause of the guitarist and mastermind Angelo Perlepes, is one of the best Hard Rock/Melodic Metal bands in Greece. The homonymous album is their debut and it was released from Unisound Records in 1991. The album starts powerfully with the up-tempo Do Me Love, which features nice Heavy Metal melodies and like on the most other songs, with lyrics about women, love, and all that shit that was popular in 80´s Hard Rock. Some songs are very influenced by some US Hard Rock giants of that period. Baby Blue, The Return, Unicorn, Mystery and Burning Eyes are all very fine examples of late 80´s/early 90´s Hard Rock. On the last song, Angel´s Capricio, Angelo Perlepes is showing us what he´s able to do with his guitar, and I tell you, that´s a lot! Gus G. is not the first maestro from Greece! Very nice album, which has too much Hard Rock songs for me. Today they sound a bit obsolete. If there were more songs like Do Me Love or Angel´s Capricio, this album would be much better!

Written by Skariotis

Mystery - Fatal Passion

Mystery´s third album was released in 2001 through Greek label Steel Gallery Records. The band´s direction changed only slightly, they still play classic Heavy Metal, but they lost these 80´s Hard Rock vibes they had on the debut. But don´t bother, the band under mastermind Angelo Perlepes still sound like the 80´s had never gone! The songwriting has also improved, there are some tracks that turn into a more progressive sound, they are more complex. The songs are (Under The) Spell Of The Spotlight, Demon´s Night (The Unholy), the oriental sounding Eastern Star, which remind a bit Maiden´s Powerslave song and the up-tempo opener Neverending Flame. These songs are for me the best on Fatal Passion. The guitar work is again excellent, Angelo is a classic guitar hero in the vein of Malmsteen and Blackmore. In the 80´s, metal fans talked much about these maestros with admiration, today nobody seems to care. What I didn´t like are parts of the vocals of singer Dimitris. He often sings in too high levels, although his normal voice is good and he is really able to sing. But must it be that high? Nevertheless, this kind of music has many fans in the world, the problem is, that Mystery is hardly known outside of Greece (a problem many bands from Greece have, our site tries to change that!).

Written by Skariotis

Mystery - Destiny

Destiny is the fourth album of Mystery, the band who gathered with guitar maestro Angelo Perlepes. It was released in 2004 by LJYL Records. Mystery´s music altered a bit from previous releases, the songs became more and more symphonical, reminding even more classical music. So the band baptised its sound Neoclassical Metal, which fits well, ´cause some guitar arrangements of Angelo remind more classic instruments like the violin than ripping metal riffs. As always, the album starts with a speedy up-tempo track. This time its called Show No Mercy and singer Dimitris is sounding a bit more aggressive, a bit like Rob Halford. He should sing more often like that. The duration of the new songs is longer, leaving more space for the instrumental abilities, namely Angelo´s guitar arrangements, which are great as usual and even more complex than on the last record. The band added a keyboard to its sound, which tries sometimes to compete with the guitar, nice contrast. This musical mastery fulminates in the instrumental song Weird, which is divided in three parts, Passion (Allegro), Lament (Adagio) and Rage (Presto). Every passionate guitar player and fan of traditional metal should listen to Destiny, you surely will love it!

Written by Skariotis

Sarissa - 1987

1987 was the year of Sarissa´s first release. So they named their first demo tape after its release year, simply 1987. In the year 1999 it was re-released as a CD and distributed together with the Greek metal magazine Metal Invader. This official re-release is handled now as an album (even if it always remain officially a demo), for many reasons: 1. the sound is very good for an 80´s demo, I think it was remastered. 2. There are nine tracks on the CD, enough for an album. 3. There are more than 12.000 copies spread, too much for an ordinary demo. On 1987 the band under mainman Jim plays 100% classic Heavy Metal, in the vein of Iron Maiden, Scorpions, Judas Priest and other NWOBHM bands. There are plenty of good tracks on the CD, as the opener War For Peace, the heavy rocker Electric Axes, the slow Turn The Power Up and the up-tempo Makedonian Army. Sadly, the last few songs cannot reach the first five, so there´s a slight decline in the songwriting. Die-hard fans of traditional metal must get their copy of 1987, ´cause the riffing, the melodies and the vocals will catapult you deep into the 80´s, as metal was called fucking Heavy Metal, and nothing else!

Written by Skariotis

Sarissa - Sarissa

Sarissa (the 5-meter-long spear of the ancient Macedonian warriors) are one of the oldest Heavy Metal bands in Greece. They were formed in 1985. After their demo from 1987 they released their debut album in 1993. It was also re-released in 2002 in CD-format by Unisound Records. Of course Unisound didn´t spend any money to make a good-looking booklet or to remaster the mediocre sound. But anyway, let´s talk about the music. Sarissa were at that time two people, Jim Selalmazidis (bass, guitar) and Fotis Kanistras (drums). The other musicians were guest musicians. The music is pure epic Heavy Metal with strong riffs and a majestic keyboard. First I thought they are just another Helloween clone like many other Greek Power Metal bands, but luckily I was totally wrong. Every song is based on a strong riff. There is also a slight touch of progressiveness in their songwriting. The album starts powerfully with Immortal Souls, a great song despite some weak moments on the vocals. Next is Survival, which has some cool breaks. Macedonian Army is a melodic up-tempo track. Marathon has a strong, oriental-sounding riff. In the middle of the album is the title track, or the track with the band´s name, Sarissa. This is the most epic song on the album, with its calm beginning and the slow but steady progression, including strong riffs, keyboard and a battle cry at the end. Atheist is just another good song on the album. Speak of the devil, King Of All Kings cannot reach the previous songs. At the end, Strong Winds and Winner return to the usual level of the album! As you can see it on the song titles, the lyrics of Sarissa are about ancient Greece and especially about ancient Macedonia, ´cause Sarissa are from northern Greece called Makedonia.
I thought that for somebody like me, who listens more to extreme metal (nevertheless I´m a big fan of Iron Maiden since 1989), it would be difficult to write a review, but at the end, Sarissa´s strong music made this a pleasure. They really have more in common with the strong, classic Heavy Metal music scene from the 80´s than with today´s Hammerfall and company. So if you´re into Priest and Maiden, you´ll maybe find a new friend in Sarissa!

Written by Skariotis

Sarissa - Masters Of Sins

Eleven years after their debut, Sarissa released their second album in 2004 through Greek label Black Lotus Records. They had split up in mid 90´s, but bass player Jim returned with a new line-up. New vocalist is Nick Iglezos and new drummer is Bill Kanakis. Sarissa´s music is still real Heavy Metal. Nick is a better vocalist than the session singer from the debut album, he´s not singing so high-pitched, but has a good voice, which in my opinion could be sometimes a bit more aggressive, to give some parts more sharpness. Lyrically, Sarissa is not singing anymore about ancient Hellas, but criticize mainly the last Iraq war. There are plenty of well-arranged epic Heavy Metal songs which feature strong riffing and additional keyboards. To These Powers (I Swear), The Ancient Land Falls, the great title track Masters Of Sins, Envious Critics and Starvation. Deathdance (Zaloggo´s) is dealing with a tragic event in Greek history, as a group of Greek women decided to jump dancing into death from a mountain with their children in their arms than rather being caught alive by following Turkish troops. Last song Hypocrisy Crusade has a blastbeat part (!) and deeper vocals, this song shows how good Sarissa can sound by mixing more brutal parts into their sound. Please more of that in the future! And please do not wait again eleven years for the next album!

Written by Skariotis

Silver R.I.S.C - Anything She Does... Is Magic

Silver R.I.S.C is an unknown band and it is very difficult to get some information about them. It seems that this album is their only one. I can´t say when they recorded it, but it must have been in the early 90´s ´cause it was produced in Molon Lave studios by Antonis Delaportas, the same studio and the same man of Rotting Christ´s Thy Mighty Contract recording. That´s the only thing the two bands share, ´cause Silver R.I.S.C plays traditional metal, which tend sometimes to sleazy Hard Rock of the late 80´s. The whole CD is a conglomerate of different music styles and re-recordings of the same songs. So there are three different versions of the song Away From Home, an original mix, a remastered version and an alternative mix. There are also two versions of the songs Twin Loving and I Wanna Know. If you forget that chaos, you still face a band, which tries on one song to sound like Aerosmith and on the other like Ozzy Osbourne and sometimes they put female choirs and even some cheap keyboards. The singer also tries to sound like Ozzy and/or Steven Tyler, but fails. And then you will found out, that there are not so many songs twice on the CD, ´cause the tracklist is just shit and has three more songs listed than really on the CD (Unisound Records...what do you expect?). And behind all that chaos you maybe will discover that the band do not sound really bad, but deliver fine 80´s metal. Sadly, nobody told the guys that they have to stick to one certain music style, changing it between the albums, not within one album.

Written by Skariotis

Snowblind - Lord Of My Fate

Snowblind was formed in 1999 by Mike Galiatsos, a founding member of the mighty Nightfall (he left Nightfall in 2003). Together with another ex-Nightfall member, Jim Agelopoulos, he formed Snowblind and released the debut album in 2001. Lord Of My Fate is their second album. It was released in 2003 by Greek Sleaszy Rider Records. Mike G. wrote many songs for Nightfall, and his songs for Snowblind have some attributes that remind his last albums with Nightfall, Lesbian Show and Diva Futura. But due to the fact, that Snowblind is not a Gothic/Death Metal band, it is not a copy. Snowblind can be described as the Heavy Metal brother of Nightfall, ´cause the music is not so heavy, but much more melodic with catchy refrains and features not the typical dark elements. Mike G. is also the vocalist, he is not screaming in extreme manner, but sings with his normal voice which is not high-pitched, but raspy and throaty, reminding smoky Hard Rock singers. Lord Of My Fate features some great songs, like the title track, Broken Dreams, Lost In Heaven, Lovin´ You To Death (which is Snowblind´s version of the Nightfall song My Own Troy from the Lesbian Show album) and Every Hell (Has An Angel). Sadly, the second half of the CD is not just as strong as the beginning, but ends luckily as strong as it starts. The speedy song Woman features lead vocals from Nightfall´s singer Efthimis Karadimas, it seems that the split between the two ex-band mates was a friendly one (Mike G. recorded the guitars for the Nightfall album I Am Jesus, although he had already left the band). The CD has a video clip from the title track as bonus. There will be a new album released by Snowblind soon, we will see if the band will stay in the Nightfall sound or evolve to next levels.

Written by Skariotis

Spitfire - First Attack

Spitfire was formed in 1984 and they have nowadays a legendary status in the Greek Power Metal scene. Their debut First Attack was released in the year 1987 by the Greek EMI (yes, a major label!). You will notice the major label influences on two issues: first, the sound is really good. Second, the music sounds much more commercial than the debuts of Sarissa, Vice Human or Vavel. I don´t know what was first, the contract or the music, but it does not matter anymore. Spitfire plays music that was very popular in the 80´s, a mix of US Hard Rock and traditional Heavy Metal. Some said they are the Greek Iron Maiden, but musically they do not sound like Maiden (the vocals remind a bit Blaze Bailey...). Their harder songs are good, especially the songs Explosion and Guilty Dreams, but their radio-oriented half-ballads are absolutely not my cup of tea. They had the chance to be the first Greek band with success, but some members showed unprofessional behaviour and left and they lost their major contract. Some years later they also had to give up the rights of the band´s name, so they called themselves Speedfire and recorded a live album. Today they are still around as live band again, as Spitfire.

Written by Skariotis

Vavel - Vavel

Vavel (=Babylon) is one of Greece´s first Heavy Metal bands, so they have a cult status in today´s Greek Power Metal scene! Their debut came out in 1986. Today the vinyl is a wanted collector´s item. The music is traditional Heavy/Power Metal, with the addition of a keyboard, which gives Vavel´s music a progressive touch. The album starts with the up-tempo title track, Vavel. Typical Heavy Metal guitars, a majestic chorus and cool guitar solos make this song a good opener. Next good song is Fight With Metal, which has a nice thrashy riff and adequate keyboards. The same for Remember, whereas Atomic Energy is a slow rocker. The influences of US Power Metal-bands are present, but Vavel do not copy other bands at all. Nice is also the only ballad on the album, Another Chance. The album ends with a cover of Johann Sebastian Bach´s Toccata, now simple called Bach´s Toccata By Vavel. A great track which shows the musical skills of the band! The weakest link on that album is the vocalist. The vocals are sounding very obsolete today. Sometimes he´s singing too high, but sometimes he gets more aggressive and that are the few good parts regarding the vocals. The most time his voice is too weak, to call it good. After that album the band recorded another one, but it didn´t get released, ´cause the band split up. The debut was released years later from Unisound Records as a cheap-looking CD.

Written by Skariotis

Vavel - The Second Death

This is Vavel´s second recording which never saw the light of day until 2002, as Unisound Records released it on CD format, limited to 3000 copies. The band split up in the 80´s, so this is not a reunion album or something like that. Let´s begin with the good changes since the debut: the sound is clear and strong, and do not remind a production made in the 80´s. The vocals are much better, singer Pavlos learned to use his voice better and he´s avoiding the very high screams. Now he reminds sometimes Michael Kiske, the former Helloween singer. The keyboard is still a welcomed addition to the guitar work. So is this a better release than the debut? The answer is no. I don´t know what happenend to the band, or why they split up, but the songs of The Second Death are all too polished and less powerful. The thrashy riffs and the up-tempo-songs disappeared. The music became radio-oriented Hard Rock, which was made obviously to get more airplay or generally, to sell more (there´s a song called Christmas Time... no comment...). The songs are not bad at all and Vavel know to surprise sometimes (vocals sound sometimes like David Coverdale or Robert Plant), but where are the riffs, the heaviness and the speed? Everything sounds like a bad radio-version of the mighty debut. There´s a battlescene on the cover, where´s the battle inside their music? Vavel lost the battle after their debut, and I feel like I know why they split before this album was about to be released. I´m disappointed.

Written by Skariotis

Vice Human - Vice Human

Vice Human was formed in the year 1981. Their homonymous debut album was released in 1984, so this was one of the very first metal releases in Greece, even earlier than their metal comrades Vavel and Sarissa! This review takes us 22 years back in time, when all metal bands looked to England and the NWOBHM scene, which breathed its final gasp in those years. Vice Human took the raw Heavy Metal sound of these pioneers and transferred it into their homeland, which would become the land with one of the most fanatic metal fans in the world. Listening to Vice Human, I automatically started to think of Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne of the late 70´s and early 80´s. This record has the same vibes as the records of these british legends. An album full of traditional metal riffs, catchy refrains and well-played guitar solos. From the galopping opener Stand Up to the rocking Life Don´t Be Blind, the up-tempo I Long To Kill You Beast, till the hymn Dust Into My Nose, this album could easily compete to the NWOBHM stars, but it can´t, for two reasons: It was released a couple of years too late and it has average vocals. They are not bad, but it is audible, that Nikos Papakostas (guitars/vocals) is much more a guitar player than a singer. He sounds like a very weak version of Rob Halford or Ozzy Osbourne. There is no power in these vocals. And that´s sad, ´cause the rest is much above average, the musical skills, the songwriting and the lyrics, everything is allright. This could be a very strong record, and in a way it still is, but they had the chance to go further than releasing only a good album. This album, with a strong vocalist, would belong to the top of traditional metal. Unisound Records re-released it on CD, together with the second Vice Human album called Metal Attack. As every Unisound CD re-release it´s without any digital remastering and with a cheap booklet, showing us once again the disrespect against the classic albums.

Written by Skariotis

Vice Human - Metal Attack

Only one year after their debut, Vice Human released 1985 their second album called Metal Attack. The band still plays a mix between Priest/Sabbath-like riffs and Maiden-like melodies and solos. You can´t make any mistake with songs like Heavy Metal (nice title), Hooligan Hero, Metal Wars and My Friend The Gun. Especially this song is one of the best of Vice Human. The music remained the same, sadly the vocals too. The guitars are dueling in best Priest/Maiden manner, the bass is galopping, but the vocals are still weak, despite the good voice of Nikos. Maybe he should had taken some singing lessons, to sound more powerful. Some time after that album the band broke up, but returned in 2003. Metal Attack was re-released by Unisound Records together with the debut album on one CD. The recording was taken from a vinyl source and you can still here the scratches from the record player on the digital CD, something that we are used to from other mediocre re-releases from Unisound. It´s sad, ´cause if you want to buy the original LP´s, you have to pay about 150 Euro, so the average re-release is the only way to get Vice Human´s early stuff, without becoming bankrupt.

Written by Skariotis

Violent Vortex - Lure Elegant

Violet Vortex can be described as the Greek Black Sabbath. With their debut album you will dive deep into the lost decade of the 1970´s, never thinking about the fact, that it was released in 2001 from Greek Secret Port Records. You will meet strong, slow-played riffs, heavy like ten tons of metal. The songwriting and the guitar solos also got the typical 70´s vibe, the whole album is one pure, retro-Doom Metal album at its best. Many calm parts give it a great atmosphere and the bass sound is a reminiscence to Geezer Butler! Who´s screaming all the time for a new Black Sabbath album? Just get Lure Elegant ´cause the old guys from Sabbath have not the abilities anymore to release an album like this. After songs like Riding Forever Free or Marsyas The Satyr you will understandmy point of view. The only complaint is the vocal work of St. Spirus, which is somehow weak, but strangely fits into the songs. There should be an improvement on the next release. Just keep going!

Written by Skariotis

Wastefall - Soulrain 21

Soulrain 21 is Wastefall´s second album. It was released in 2004 by Sleaszy Rider Records. Wastefall plays progressive Heavy Metal, but not in the vein of bands like Dream Theater, so the music is also accessible for normal metal fans and not too fiddly and introvert. The band is often compared with Pain Of Salvation, but Wastefall has incorporated heavier parts and also some oriental/Greek parts in their sound. The title of the album refers to a bus accident, which killed in the year 2003 21 students and it is one of the worst accidents in Greek history. Musically, Wastefall are ranging from calmer acoustic piano and violin parts to great guitar harmonies unto crushing metal riffing. The diverse, but always comprehensible songwriting is topped by the great vocals of the singer Domenik, who surely belong to Greece´s best metal vocalists. Not too high, not too deep, but variable as the music and able to express every little detail with his voice. Great performance! The album is divided in two CDs, the first one features ten songs and the second one two additional tracks and a video-clip of the song Stunned To The World. A good choice, this song can give a short and fast insight to the band´s sound for people who don´t know Wastefall. To mention a highlight is nearly impossible, it depends on the listener´s mood and his metal preferences. Progressive Metal fans can invest blindly in Soulrain 21!

Written by Skariotis

Wastefall - Self Exile

Wastefall´s third album was released in 2006. After the last album Soulrain 21, the band moved to the American label Sensory Records. Musically, not much has changed since Soulrain 21. Wastefall still plays a blend of melodic, oriental-influenced progressive metal, with the incorporation of heavy guitar riffs, which are almost on a Nu Metal level. The difference to the last album is not very big. The band has added now more oriental elements (mainly oriental vocal lines), which appear only a few times, but give the songs more depth. More often is the usage of piano melodies, always decent in the background. Singer Domenic delivers again a great job, giving the songs the needed air to breathe. His vocals are nearly unsurpassable, especially on the calmer songs Sleepwalk or 4 Minutes To Abandon. All in all, Self Exile is a calmer album with good atmosphere and some great harder parts. In contrary to the last album, the songwriting is more tightened, therefore the songs are easier to enjoy, even if the music always remains progressive metal. I hope, that now that Wastefall moved to an international label, more fans will notice the band and the Self Exile album!

Written by Skariotis

Windfall - Adamantia

Windfall comes from Kavala, northern Greece. It seems that they have a strong local scene, ´cause there are more known Power Metal bands from that town, as Elwing and Nemesis. Windfall was founded by the two brothers Leonidas and Iraklis in 1999 and they also play Power Metal. Adamantia is their debut album and it was released in 2001 by Greek Steel Gallery Records. Of the myriad Power Metal bands that emerged from Greece in the beginning of this millennium, Windfall belongs to the better bands, ´cause they found a way to enrich the usual songwriting with good musical skills, catchy compositions and an epic touch. Singer Tasos has a good voice and he luckily avoids the highest ends of the vocal range. The band recorded Adamantia in the Nemesis Studio, which is also in Kavala and belongs today to the best studios in Greece. Adamantia is an early recording of this studio and the general sound is good, but the guitar sound could be better and more powerful. It was produced by singer Tasos, who was also the singer of the band Nemesis and he probably is also the owner of this recording studio. The album starts powerfully with the title track and got a lot of good tunes, just like the epic Frozen Rose, the Speed Metal grenades Obsession and Circle Of Souls, and Walk Of A Dreamer, a typical Power Metal track. There are also three calm songs, which make Windfall´s sound even more variable. Generally, there are some similarities to the band Elwing, another great band from Kavala, the two bands shared some members for some time and they recorded both in Nemesis Studio. Adamantia will please all Power Metal fans, don´t be frightened off the strange artwork, the music matters and all in all this is not bad for a debut album!

Written by Skariotis

Windfall - Infector

I thought I put a wrong CD in my player as I listened to the first notes. Windfall played typical Power Metal on their debut Adamantia, back in 2001. Now I listen to brutal riffs and extreme vocals. The CD-inlay still tells me that this band is the Greek band Windfall. After the debut, the band signed a contract with Sleaszy Rider Records and got heavier with their second album Time Of The Haunted. Infector is their third album (came out in 2005) and it´s not only a bit heavier, the music has completely changed. The band has nothing in common now with the Euro-Power Metal scene. The two core members, the brothers Iraklis and Leonidas decided to play a heavy mixture of brutal, powerful riffs in the vein of the new american Thrash/Death Metal bands, added with melodic guitars as they are usual in the Swedish melodic Death Metal scene. The new sound is completed with the aggressive vocals of the new singer Vangelis, who reminds also singers of the Scandinavian scene. The songwriting is catchy, full of intense riffs and remarkable melodies are played in a very thoughtful way, it sounds like Windfall has never done anything else before! Highlights are many, like Poisoned Mastermind, Clone Generation, Catacomb Princess (great refrain), Liquid Flesh Divine and the title track The Infector (that´s modern Thrash Metal!). The sound is also better than just good, especially the guitar and the drum sound kicks seriously ass. Windfall competes easily to every so-called melodic Death Metal and to modern Thrash Metal band due the powerful but diverse material. It´s strange that they didn´t change the name of the band after changing so radical their sound. Unfortunately (for them and the whole Greek scene) the members announced the death of the band on the band´s homepage. They said good-bye after their strongest musical effort. I hope that these musicians will return (under the name Windfall or not), ´cause they surely still have much to give to the Hellenic metal scene!

Written by Skariotis

Wisdom - Rain Dream

Wisdom is an obscure Power Metal band which appeared and disappeared sometime in the mid 90´s. Their one and only sign of existence is this album, which was released in 1995 from Greek Zenetzi label and re-released from Greek JeS Music. The songs are all ordinary, traditional Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. They are not bad, deliver good musical skills and good vocals, but they do not fit to the year 1995. If this album would have been released in 1982 the band would have get a lot more attention. In 1995 nobody cared. The production is also good for 1982, but such a powerless (not bad, but... just powerless) production is since then out-of-date. Regarding the statement of JeS Music, the band needed more than two years of hard work to produce the album, which makes the whole matter just more ridiculous. I can´t even say which member played what instrument, ´cause there are no descriptions under the photos of the tarted up and blow-dried members. The artwork sucks also. After 35 minutes the album ends and the band disappears again in the vortex of the Power Metal nebula.

Written by Skariotis

Wolfcry - Nightbreed

Nightbreed is Wolfcry´s second album. It was released by Black Lotus Records in 2003. The beginning of the band goes back to 1992 but they started to release albums in the new millennium. Nightbreed starts with the up-tempo track Metamorphosis, which is a good example for the whole album. Parts of it have a strong feeling of traditional Heavy Metal, other parts tend more to the newer Power Metal direction. Same for the vocals of the singer Costas. Sometimes he sings very raspy, like in an older band from the 80´s but suddenly turning to a higher, cleaner voice, reminding the singer of Hammerfall. I like notably their traditional metal side, their Power Metal side is not really my gusto. Luckily, the band has a diverse sound, often enriched by keyboards or even a piano (as it is used in Endless Circle and As Darkness...), with calmer, but also fast parts. So you can see it both ways, Wolfcry plays good traditional metal, which is sadly often interrupted by mediocre, depleted Power Metal, or Wolfcry is just another Power Metal band from Greece, which luckily enriches its sound by more traditional elements. For the most fans these two genres are anyway the same. So if you like Heavy/Power Metal you should risk an ear or two to Nightbreed, you´ll maybe find your next audio-amusement.

Written by Skariotis