• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

With a name like Freedomination I was expecting some East Coast or maybe Bay Area Thrash Metal from this young Finnish band. There is definitely a hint of Thrash on their third demo, 2015’s The Stand, but that is not the whole story. The title track, which opens the demo, is mid-paced with throaty, growled vocals and reminds me of Visigoth’s "Iron Brotherhood" (the one from the Vengeance demo more than the version on The Revenant King). I wouldn’t say it is as good especially the vocals which sound a bit limited. Next up is "Unleash Hell" a speedy, Judas Priest-inspired anthem and that is followed by "Tower of Power" which combines the slow moodiness of "The Stand" and the heart-pumping tempos of "Unleash Hell." The riffs are decent and the production is quite good though a bit too modern for my taste. The vocals are probably my biggest hurdle, as they just never seemed to gel with any of the songs. I won’t call them bad, because they aren’t, but they didn’t do it for me. Otherwise, it’s clear the guys in Freedomination know their way around their instruments and The Stand is promising enough that I’ll be watching for their debut album. Fans of Traditional Heavy Metal with a modern sound should give these guys a listen.