This
is an Italian (Sardinian) band build around guitarist Francesco Marras. He wrote
the songs and found in Gianluigi Girardi (Crown of Autumn) an acceptable singer.
With Antonio Doro on bass and as guest Mattia Stancioiu (Vision Divine,
Labyrinth, Crown of Autumn) on drums the line up stands. Francesco is a guitar
virtuoso that likes his shredding and that can be heard in the songs. Now I come
to the weaker part; the songwriting. Several songs are rather intelligent
written and listen away nicely, but there are also a few that are just too
average and simple. Iron Maiden, Edguy lay on top at times, but then packed in
weaker songs.
The
style is NWOBHM combined with power metal and a slight progressive touch.
Vocalist Gianluigi can't convince me all the time. He can surely sing, but
sounds a bit too average to make a difference. Together with the weaker
compositions, the album can't impress me. It all sounds too safe; there are so
much power metal acts that are just a tad better. With this new album, Screaming
Shadows will not make a real step ahead; there are too many bands in this genre
that do the same thing. One remark I have to make at the end of this review and
that is about the vocals of guest singer Alessandro Marras in the song "Free
Again". He sounds a lot like Bruce Dickinson and that isn't very odd if you know
he is a singer in an Iron Maiden Tribute band. The weaker part however is that
this guest tops the singer of the band and that says a lot. Gianluigi has a warm
voice in the lower parts, but his high pitched voice sometimes runs off the
rails.
The
musicians know what they are doing, but the song writing and the execution of
the songs is too weak and without any challenge. Average Italian power metal we
have heard a 1000 times before.