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At the end of 2008 this band was formed in Chicago and man, am I glad they did. I still have a large pack of new stuff that needs to be listened to and reviewed, but this CD didn't leave my player for a long time. Brilliant guitar shreds in Dragonforce style combined with the melodic black metal parts as we know it from Dimmu Borgir and the lot with a big death metal sauce Amon Amarth/Arch Enemy-style. The lyrics handle about medieval fantasy-themed battles and destruction.

Expect ultra fast drumming, bombastic keys, growling vocals, howling guitarsoli and this all in songs with many tempo changes. On top of that, the songs are well written and with good melodies. After every spin I got more obsessed by this band. I even don't know if I' can remain objective. I think that every metal fan that loves stuff from bands like Nightwish, Dimmu Borgir, Children of Bodom, Turisas, Amon Amarth, Arch Enemy and of course Dragonforce will probably find elements he likes. Starkill put all these influences in a blender and created this: 'Fires of Life'.

For me this is the best debut album so far this year. Don't wait any longer and be sure you get your own copy.... otherwise you will miss out on something good for sure. This must be the album of the month and I shall take care of that by topping the rating a colleague of mine awarded the re-release of Southern Cross with.

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