Beyond the Space Beyond the Time [Import]

Okay, I've been a huge fan of symphonic/power metal for some time, having been introduced into the genre by bands like Blind Guardian. I first discovered this band on youtube, but sadly iTunes did not carry the CD. No stores in my area, either, doubly irritating me. So, finally, I czeched Amazon. Thankfully someone did have it, and for a very agreeable price. This debut album is sheer genius, and utterly beautiful. The soaring vocals, epic orchestra and powerful metal musicianship turn this album into something that will make a lasting impression on you. If you are a fan of bands like Blind Guardian, Serenity or Kamelot then you will absolutely love this album! Buy it, listen to it and love it!

The poor, beleaguered power metal scene has had many an up and down, but of all the downs it had gone through, one seemed poised to potentially ruin it all for the rest of us. I remember when it all became harder to breathe when inchs-of-blood-drenched Canadians threw false-ettos about the fall of the orcs at us, and limey, dragon forcing wanks stormed the scene with their take on nu-shred "power" metal, and many a kid considered them the most vivid virtuosos since Paganini, and no amount of vacuous inanity on their behalf could topple them. It was enough to drive some of us back into our personal Middle-Earths (during Nightfall, of course!) and bury ourselves under the swaths of sword-swinging riffs and so many singers we'll need to break out extra steins. Thankfully, there were so many other bands that have come out recently who've prevented stagnation in their musical realm, each one worth their weight in half-down-tuned guitars and double bass drums.

And just then, I stumbled upon what would be the band to beat...

Simply put, this disc is absolutely stunning. It's quite rare, and always a pleasure, to come across a power metal album so dripping with passion and heart as well as technical ability that would cause one to salivate or shed a tear. It's been such a while, now, since a power metal act, or even a metal act in this day and age, threw me for such a loop, and WHAT a loop it was! This here disc is such a work of shining brilliance that your attention span may limited to only the music itself, and were that to happen, it would be best to not drive or operate heavy machinery when "Beyond the Time, Beyond the Space" is playing lest something horrible happens on account of your negligence. Trust me, with something this stunning, it's bound to happen. Transcending the limitations of their genre`s "traditional" feel, the listener is treated with five fists of hyper-speed symphonic madness, taking the Rhapsody-like sympho-power metal thing and upping the tempo, compositional ability, and fun factor (despite its overt seriousness) to the point of chaos-inducing, where enchanting melody and pulsing heaviness surround the listener with the threat of never letting up.

Blinding guitar and bass(!) leads and solos flitter by with crushing riffs, absorbing keyboard/piano tandems, straight-to-the-heavens-borne opera wailing, sireny female soprano singing, blackened rasps and tight, machine-gunny drums like a group with chops so tightened they risk getting lockjaw. And the fact that this is their DEBUT ALBUM makes it all the more impressive. Emotions run very rampant through the disc, from blistering rage to dour mournfulness, creating a spiritual roller coaster of fantasy and heroism the likes of which is the main focal point of plentiful other power metal acts, but with Pathfinder it seems so much more sincere, more real, and all the more breath-taking. I found myself wholly transfixed with this disc, taken to deeply into their world that I really don't think I'd want to return to the real world and all its limiting, soul-crushing ills. Thus is one of the BEST ways a band can prove itself worthy in my eyes, and sadly, only a few acts out there are able to do so, and I would put these guys at the top of my list, where songs like "Pathway to the Moon", "The Lord of Wolves" and the title track annihilate with pure skill and ability alone, only to bring you back to the land of the living with their genre-based mastery.

So in the end, "Beyond the Time, Beyond the Space" is an unforgettable affair of truly epic proportions, something that begs for repeated listens. And while their repertoire may be a bit overkilling for casual listeners to the point where they're turned off by it, it's really their loss, as a more wondrous disc has yet to surface in this day and age. As for me, I'll enjoy the living hell out of this and will be waiting with bated breath for their next opus.

Originally written for The Offering
[...]

› Go to Amazon.com to see both reviews  5.0 out of 5 stars