Lanfear X to the Power of Ten
by Derric Miller
Staff Writer
It’s been over three years since the German Prog/Power Metal band Lanfear released one of the best CDs of 2005, Another Golden Rage. That album landed in the Top 10 of critics around the world, and firmly set Lanfear on a path for success, especially with Another Golden Rage and The Art Effect finally getting a North American release thanks to Nightmare Records.
Of course, a lot can happen in that amount of time, and Lanfear parted ways with long-time vocalist Tobias Althammer — an immense talent clearly schooled in the Ray Alder, Geoff Tate, Roy Khan, etc. style of singing — and brought in new singer Nuno Miguel Fernandes (ex-Anguish) to take his place. Fernandes doesn’t sound anything like Althammer, which is both a positive and a negative …
The one positive is that the band clearly wanted to become heavier with more Thrash tendencies, both musically and vocally. (Pyramaze, anyone?) The negatives are twofold: Althammer owns an incredibly flexible range, so the new singer needs to be able to pull off the classic Lanfear sound. Can Fernandes really sing songs like “The Artefact” and “The Unrestrained” at the same level Althammer did? The second negative, to boil it down — Lanfear is asking fans to get on board with the new sound. They are gambling that the fan base they are aiming for is larger and potentially more viable for the band’s success than those they leave behind.
The opening track on X to the Power of Ten is “Enter Dystopia,” a heavy, menacing and heavy composition. You’ll hear from the first note that there is a new Lanfear voice. To compare, Fernandes is a little more husky than Althammer’s delivery, with a grittier edge to his voice. He doesn’t flaunt that harshness here, though; Lanfear wrote a song that could fit on Another Golden Rage to open this release. A safe play, for sure. Fernandes is also the lyricist on the track, and he certainly brings the same style fans are used to, with lines like, “Enter the age of treason, drowned by the blood of their lies,” and “Hollow bodies and sunken smiles, preventive surveillance, invisible eyes.” Guitarist Markus Ullrich blazes through a bending and heated solo, but the coolest aspect is how the song softens and fades out at the end.
“Brave New Men” is a song about humans’ necessity to play God, specifically with cloning. It’s obvious that one of the reasons Fernandes made the roster is because of his strong lyrical ability; “Brave New Men” reads like an Asimov or Heinlein short story. While one of the more straight ahead compositions on X to the Power of Ten, it’s one of those songs you can’t get out of your head once you hear it, and is a highlight of the release.
“Synaptogenesis” is one of the tracks where you’ll hear the old-school Lanfear screaming while Fernandes shreds his vocals on lines phrases like, “Digital suicide bomb!” From a technical aspect, Lanfear has always been like Fates Warning, able to change time signatures and tempos with masterful precision, and you’ll hear how good they are as musicians on “Synaptogenesis.”
“Another Broken Shell” is one of the mellower songs on X to the Power of Ten. The song begins with a poignant guitar lead from Ullrich and then flows into a keyboard tinged composition. While stylistically, Fernandes is a heavier singer than Alhammer, it’s not a major difference in these kinds of compositions. In fact, this sounds like a huge hit. If you haven’t figured it out yet, Lanfear is really good …
It all closes on “Seeds of the Plague.” While the song begins slow, it becomes a raging and furious Thrash entity in some sections. Drummer Jürgen Schrank certainly impresses you on earlier songs, but damn is he some kind of machine on “Seeds of the Plague.” The final track brings together the various styles Lanfear excels at and combines them all on “Seeds of the Plague.”
X to the Power of Ten is a new start for Lanfear, but longtime fans can rest assured it’s the same band you remember. They may have something to prove in a live setting yet, but in the studio, X to the Power of Ten is as superior as Another Golden Rage.
Official site: Lanfear
Label: Locomotive Records
Track listing:
Enter Dystopia
My Will Be Done
Decryption
Brave New Men
The Question Keeper
Synaptogenesis
Jugglin’ at the Edge
Just Another Broken Shell
A Twin Phenomenon
The Art of Being Alone
Seeds of the Plague
HRH Rating: 8.1/10