Mob Rules Radical Peace
by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer
Radical Peace is the sixth album from Germany’s Mob Rules, and is one of the most anticipated power metal releases of 2010 (or late 2009 if you had access to the European import). If you haven’t been following this band’s career you might question that statement. When Mob Rules debuted at the beginning of the decade they were little more than another Helloween disciple with a Rhapsody-like appreciation for Dungeons & Dragons. Since 2004, however, the band has released a series of stunning melodic power metal albums to rival anything recently issued by countrymen Helloween, Gamma Ray or even Primal Fear.
Radical Peace is the band’s latest masterpiece, and it is clearly a continuation of the journey started with 2007’s Ethnolution A.D. and to some extent 2004’s Among the Gods. The band has been refining and perfecting their brand of melodic power metal while at the same time moving away from the genre’s typical fantasy themes and tackling weightier subject matter such as religion, government, corruption and hatred. That transition is culminated in the epic “The Oswald File.” Subtitled “Ethnolution II – A Matter of Unnecessary Doubt,” the 18-minute centerpiece of Radical Peace has to be the first power metal song focused on the assassination of John F. Kennedy. This is the kind of progressively-minded opus you might expect from Symphony X or even Dream Theater, but Mob Rules pulls it off brilliantly. It’s never so weighty or orchestrated that it outlives its effectiveness as a song, and it’s every bit as stirring and stimulating as the album’s shorter songs.
Speaking of which, “Children of the Flame,” “Warchild” and “Waiting For the Sun” are all incredibly good songs. Honestly, there isn’t a single “filler” track on the album. Every song is power metal perfection, and the album as a whole seems to capture all of the best elements of the power metal genre (the melodies, the soaring vocals, the inspired songwriting) and none of the clichés. It never seems silly or overly sing-song laden, it doesn’t sacrifice metal spirit for the sake of polish and technical proficiency, and the lyrics are actually worth reading.
January may seem a bit early to start making predictions for “Best of 2010” lists, but Radical Peace is the strongest power metal album to come along in quite some time, and definitely seems like an early contender for power metal album of the year. If nothing else, maybe it will give Mob Rules the “tier 1” status they’ve deserved since at least 2004.
Bottom line: if you’re a fan of melodic power metal, Radical Peace is a must-have album. Buy it already!
Label: AFM Records
Track Listing:
1. Children of the Flame
2. Trial By Fire
3. Warchild
4. Astral Hand
5. The Oswald File (Ethnolution II: A Matter of Unnecessary Doubt)
a. Chapter I – Prologue
b. Chapter II – Desperate Son
c. Chapter III – 11:30 a.m.
d. Chapter IV – Unnecessary Doubt?
e. Chapter V – A Dead Man’s Face
f. Chapter VI – Did You Reach the Sun?
6. Waiting For the Sun
7. The Glance of Fame
Online: www.mobrules.de/
Hardrock Haven rating: 9/10