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I'm surprised by the sometimes lackluster reviews I've seen this album get. Pyramaze generated some buzz with their debut album, and so there was some anticipation for this. I have to say the tag of 'Generic Power Metal' kept me away from this for a while, but now I'm disappointed I didn't see more praise for this album when it was released, and I wonder how many other people skipped this and should not have.

Pyramaze are Power Metal of the proggy school, but not too much so. My first impression of them was a less wanky Pagan's Mind, with better vocal hooks. They start off with a bullshit intro track, but then they kick off a string of absolute killers starting with "The Birth" going through "Ancient Words Within" and "Souls In Pain". The second half of the album loses a bit of momentum, but not much. Throughout Pyramaze employ tight, proficient musicianship and excellent vocals and melodies. The songs are nicely complex, building enough depth to satisfy without losing focus. The storyline is not terribly interesting or well-done, but when the music is this good I am prepared to overlook that.

This was definitely one of the better Power Metal releases last year, and I'm sorry I missed it until now. If you want solid Power Metal with killer vocals, memorable hooks and just enough prog to keep things interesting, then this is an album to track down. Recommended.