• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

I'm not really sure how France's Nightmare has flown under my radar until now since they've been around since 1979. I mean, I wasn't even aware there was a Power Metal band by that name in existence. Weird. Anyway, after that introduction, it goes without saying Insurrection is my first exposure to Nightmare. After my first couple of spins of Insurrection, I now have a good idea why I haven't heard of Nightmare previously. Power Metal is a crowded field, so to stand apart from the crown, a band needs to either have a gimmick or, preferably, be REALLY good at playing or songwriting, with all three being the elusive hat trick. Unfortunately, Nightmare doesn't have a gimmick and while their playing and songwriting skills are good, they aren't going to make you forget the Edguys, Kamelots or Nightwishes of the world.

I am, by no means, disparaging Nightmare or Insurrection, far from it. They are obviously talented musicians and can write a decent tune, but it's all so damn generic. Honestly, "Decameron" sounds like it came from some late period Metal Church album, while tracks like "Insurrection" and "Mirrors of Damnation" could easily be by Primal Fear. All the songs are heavy, with some great riffing, and the production is solid, with plenty of punch in the bottom end, but the choruses just aren't catchy. Nothing sticks, not even after multiple listens. I wanted to like this a lot more than I did, but it just never clicked. Even "Three Mile Island" with its unusual and arresting subject matter, falls flat.

I hate to use a cliché but "you could do worse" is about the best I can say for Nightmare's Insurrection. If you like Power Metal, you aren't necessarily going to be disappointed, but you aren't going to be blown away, either.