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Despite having a pretty damn epic band name, Florida's Helms Deep plays mostly traditional heavy metal, though, to be fair, there are epic streaks. I can pick out quite a few influences, from fellow Floridians Savatage in the high-pitched screams to the urgent rumbling of early Metal Church ("Flight of the Harpy" reminds me of "In the Blood") to the spacey weirdness of Cirith Ungol on the trippy, adventurous "Red Planet." The playing is excellent, but I think the songwriting is a step down from the debut, with fewer really memorable moments, other than the ones that remind me of other bands. I can't hate Chasing the Dragon; it is simply too good to not enjoy but it comes off as a bit derivative and lacking a sound that is identifiably Helms Deep. A solid effort that should keep this band in the traditional/epic heavy metal conversation, but I feel like there is plenty of room for these guys to do better.