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Pennsylvania's Forgotten Legacy plays firmly in the U.S. style of Heavy Metal on their 2009 demo, The Oracle. The sharp, almost abrasive, riffs bring to mind Vicious Rumor or Jag Panzer. Singer Joel Wood's gruff mid-range and impressive high screams, not unlike Jag Panzer's Harry Conklin, further underscore the similarities.

The five songs on The Oracle are good, though not instantly memorable. The sterile, Pro-Toolsy productions (this is a demo, to be fair) doesn't help much. The energy of the band shines through, however, and it's easy to imagine these songs sounding infinitely better live. There's a bit of Fates Warning in the opener, "2012," and bassist Chuck Donohue lets his Steve Harris influence show on "Rage." Closer "Forgotten Legacy" gives the best account of the band's songwriting with some different tempos and guitarist Mike Johnson's best solo.

Impressive, for a demo, The Oracle shows that Forgotten Legacy is a band that could make some noise in the future.