by Justin Gaines
– Senior Columnist/News Editor —
Like a comet that only blazes through the sky and disappears only to return after several years, the arrival of each new Magic Kingdom album seems to occur only after a five year absence. Of course, founding guitarist Dushan Petrossi is busy with his other band Iron Mask, but five years is a long time away, especially when there’s such a huge volume of quality power metal albums each year. Fortunately the new album, titled Savage Requiem, is worth the wait.
Savage Requiem is the fourth Magic Circle album to date, and the first to feature Random Eyes/ex-Adagio singer Christian Palin, who replaces Olaf Hayer. Power metal bands seem to fall into two distinct camps. They’re either Symphonic to the Nth degree (think Gloryhammer or the Rhapsodies), or they’re on the Heavy/Speed Metal side of things (like Mystic Prophecy and Brainstorm). Magic Kingdom is one of the rare bands that can do both, and do them equally well. Savage Requiem is as glorious and epic and cheesy as you could possibly want from a power metal album, but it’s also heavy as hell and has some breakneck rhythms. Think Iron Savior, but with dragons instead of spaceships.
Palin seems to be an ideal fit for Magic Kingdom’s brand of power metal. He has a good range and plenty of power, and he never gets too melodramatic in his delivery. He can also put a snarl in his voice for some of the thrashier, more headbanging songs. And of course Petrossi’s guitar work and Symphonic arrangements are a major highlight of Savage Requiem, giving it both a majestic atmosphere and a blistering technical aspect. Even with all of that they never lose sight of the melodic side of things that’s so important in this kind of music.
There are no harsh vocals this time around, nor are there any lengthy/multi-part epic tracks, but Savage Requiem doesn’t really need either. Highlights include the anthemic “Guardian Angels,” the dark epic “Four Demon Kings of Shadowlands” and “Guardian Angels,” which really showcases Petrossi’s technicality.
It’s a shame we only hear from Magic Kingdom every five years, because they’re one of the more consistent (and consistently impressive) bands in Power Metal. No matter what kind of Power Metal you prefer, there’s a lot to love about Savage Requiem. Fans of bands like Iron Savior, Rhapsody of Fire, Mystic Prophecy and of course Iron Mask will definitely want to check out this one.
Genre: Power Metal
Band:
Dushan Petrossi (g) (k) (v)
Christian Palin (v) (k)
Vassili Moltchanov (b)
Michael Brush (d)
Track Listing:
1. In Umbra Mea
2. Guardian Angels
3. Rivals Forever
4. Full Moon Sacrifice
5. Ship of Ghosts
6. Savage Requiem
7. Four Demon Kings of Shadowlands
8. With Fire and Sword
9. Dragon Princess
10. Battlefield Magic
11. Dragon Princess (acoustic version)
Label: AFM Records
Website: www.magic-kingdom.be
Hardrock Haven Rating: 7.5/10
