Brainstorm | On the Spur of the Moment

by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer –

Long running, hard-hitting German power metal band Brainstorm is back with a new studio album, their ninth, titled On the Spur of the Moment. With a sound that focused more on the headbanging heavy metal side of power metal than the sing-song hyper-melodic focus of some of their peers (looking in your direction, Freedom Call), Brainstorm has always been one of the more exciting bands in the German power metal scene, but their last couple of albums didn’t thrill a lot of their fan base.

Downburst and Memorial Roots were both totally solid albums, but they didn’t have the same energy as Brainstorm’s essential Soul Temptation and Liquid Monster releases. There was a sense that the band was just treading water to some extent. You definitely don’t get that sense with On the Spur of the Moment, which grabs you by the throat from the opening seconds of lead off single “Below the Line” and never lets up until the final song ends. Maybe it’s that the rhythms are heavier, or that the melodies are more infectious, or that Andy Franck – now free from his commitment to side band Symphorce – is singing with renewed vigor and jaw-dropping power, but there’s just an incredible energy to this album. The songs on Memorial Roots were enjoyable while the disc was spinning and forgotten once it stopped. With On the Spur of the Moment, songs like “Still Insane,” “In These Walls” and “Dark Life” lodge in your head immediately and won’t let go until you play the album again…and again.

If you’ve let your attention drift away from Brainstorm in recent years, it’s time to give them another look. On the Spur of the Moment is the band’s first truly essential album since Liquid Monster, and is one of the best – if not the best – power metal album 2011 has to offer. Now if only we could get the band over to America to tour in support of this album.

Edition Notes: The limited edition version of On the Spur of the Moment comes in a digipack and features two bonus tracks: “The Pain Is Mine” and “The Heartless Spawn of Seed.”

Genre: Power Metal

Band:
Dieter Bernert (d)
Torsten Ihlenfeld (g)(v)
Milan Loncaric (g) (v)
Andy Franck (v)
Antonio Ieva (b)

Track Listing:
1. Below the Line
2. In the Blink of an Eye
3. Temple of Stone
4. In These Walls
5. Still Insane
6. Dark Life
7. No Saint – No Sinner
8. Where Your Actions Lead You To Live
9. A Life On Hold
10. My Own Hell

Label: AFM Records

Website: www.brainstorm-web.net

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.75/10

Brainstorm Memorial Roots

by Joe Mis
Staff Writer

Memorial Roots is the latest release from German power metal veterans Brainstorm. This album is a set of 11 uncompromising pure melodic power metal tracks, each displaying Brainstorm’s traditional big booming sound and fine musicianship.

Brainstorm was founded way back in 1989 by the guitar duo of Torsten Ihlenfeld and Milan Loncaric along with drummer Dieter Bernert. After a few years of the typical band-startup tooling around, they recruited Andy B. Franck as lead vocalist in 1999, and this truly created and solidified the Brainstorm sound. Antonio Ieva joined the band and is their current bassist.

Andy Frank has a superb voice – deep and resonant, and he knows how to use it. His almost silky smooth vocals are the lynchpin of the Brainstorm’s music, and somehow he seems to be giving every word maximum effort yet never seems to be straining. Always clear and understandable, he is definitely one of the best front men in metal. Torsten Ihlenfeld and Milan Loncaric make an outstanding guitar duo and display wonderful teamwork across the entire album. Equally comfortable laying down high-speed power riffs or soft acoustic style passages, they are masters at setting a mood for each song and work very well with the other musicians in the group. Antonio Ieva is a fine bass player and handles his job with great enthusiasm, while Dieter Bernert lays down some incredible drum lines without abusing the double bass. These two provide a very good foundation for the music, and the band is truly a cohesive unit. They handle all of their tempo changes and variations in tone and style without any difficulty.

The CD opening is one of the only down spots on the album. Before “Forsake What I Believed” really gets rolling there is an intro piece with a bit of an orchestral sound that drags on for a minute and fifteen seconds and for the most part is so faint it is almost inaudible. Once you get through that oddity the rest of the album truly rocks. “Shiver” is a great upbeat rock track that allows the guitarists to really shine, while “Would You” is a vocalist’s showpiece with layer after layer of harmonies and great lyrics. They pay tribute to some of their influences with a very Iron Maiden-ish opening to the epic “The Conjunction Of 7 Planets”, an old Fates Warning tone to the pounding “Cross The Line”, and a Metallica style riff in “Victim”.

No matter what the style or influence, all the tracks on Memorial Roots are well structured, well performed and always melodic – no screaming, screeching, grunting or gurgling here. There is plenty of music, lots of melody, great catchy hooks, riffs and grooves – everything that makes an album a success. The production and engineering are excellent as well, and the songwriting and musicianship are solid all around – just what one would expect from a truly veteran band.

Memorial Roots is a winner, no doubt. If you were going to expose someone to power metal for the first time, this would be the album to use. Musically and lyrically outstanding, Brainstorm continues improve with each new release, and seems to want to amaze the European metal scene once again. Even if you are not into power metal this album will be a treat, as underneath all the power metal trappings there is lots of melody, great performances, varied styles and good songwriting. Very Highly recommended!

Label: AFM Records

Web: http://brainstorm-web.nicowobben.com/posts/ , http://www.myspace.com/officialbrainstorm

Track Listing:

01 – Forsake What I Believed
02 – Shiver
03 – The Conjunction Of 7 Planets
04 – Cross The Line
05 – Nailed Down Dreams
06 – Blood Still Stains
07 – Ahimsa
08 – The Final Stages Of Decay
09 – Victim
10 – When No One Cares
11 – Would You

Hardrock Haven Rating: 9.5/10