Band:
Sven D’Anna - vocals, keyboards
Dano Boland - guitars
V. Leson - bass
S. van Heek - drums
Michael Maaß - guitars
Info
Production: by Andy Horn
Sound by: Achim Köhler
Artwork by: Anthony Clarkson (Blind Guardian, Rage etc.)
Photos by: Jochen van Eden
Discography:
Son of Darkness (1995)
Battle of Metal (1997)
Bound by Metal (1999)
Head of the Deceiver (2001)
Odin (2003)
Magic Circle (2005)
Goochan (2007)
Released 01/30/09
Reviewed 03/18/09
Links:
legion-of-doom.de
myspace
massacre
Judging by what the band is singing about and their love for nordic mythology one might think they belong in the snow covered landscapes of northern Sweden. If you thought that, you are in error as this band belongs in Germany. Germans singing about Nordic mythology, well that can be accepted even though the lyrical themes don’t really often reflect what is going on musically they can be somewhat of an indicator of what we can expect from the record.
Musically we can really expect miracles when we notice what we have on the board, but still miracles have happened before, think Human Fortress with their knights in shining armour but still amazingly original and wonderful music. Wizard plays the heavier type of what is mostly called power metal, one can state that they represent the American style of the genre with heavier and slower than what is usually seen in the European or German style. Heavy riffs, choirs and sing-along choruses is what we have and I guess what we could have expected, stylewise it is not a long leap from the latest record I heard before this one, Odin, it is in the same stylistic format.
Guess I may not sound all too positive when it comes to this record and to Wizard in general but you ought to know that I already own one record with this band, the 2003 offering called Odin. That one is a good record but it didn’t quite do it for me, and well, the same really goes for this record as well. It is well produced, well played, and well made in many aspect but the songs are really lacking in punch and power, there is nothing for me to grab on to and the record just passes through without grabbing my attention at all. Maybe it has to do with the lyrical theme of the band but I don’t think it does, the thing is that no matter how well polished and well sounding something is, it is nothing if you cannot bring it to life and in that matter Wizard fail and they fail miserably. Nothing against Wizard however, just their lack of imagination.
No matter how much you want, you cannot really praise other than the sound of this record, the songs don’t really have much to grab your attention and enjoyment. It is as I already said something that you just pass through without even noticing.
There is a lot of potential in this record but you cannot get very far with only that, there has to be something more and that something more is what is missing from this offering by Wizard. But sure, if you enjoy Vikings, Nordic gods, Wizards and other similar stuff then you might actually enjoy this if you really put your mind into listening to the lyrics but for the rest of us this is nothing but dull music very neatly giftwrapped.
HHHHHHH