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Burning Point is one of Finnish guitarist Pete Ahonen's bands, the others being Ghost Machinery and Stargazery, and the band's second record, Feeding the Flames, was one of my gateway albums as I got back in to Heavy Metal seriously in the early 2000's. Burning Point released a few more albums after Feeding the Flames, to little fanfare, and since 2009 Ahonen's attentions have been on his other projects. The good news is Burning Point is back with a self-titled album for 2015. To make things even better, Ahonen has turned the vocal duties, something he handled himself on prior releases, over to former Battle Beast singer Nitte Valo. There was much hand-wringing and teeth-gnashing here at The Metal Crypt when Valo left Battle Beast but if Burning Point is any indication she's landed on her feet and in a great place. Whether she's singing one of the new songs or one of the re-recorded songs from earlier in Burning Point's career, like the epic, mid-paced "All the Madness" or the speedy "Into the Fire" (one of my all-time favorite Power Metal songs) Valo owns every one. She has great charisma and gives Burning Point a whole new dimension. Ahonen, for his part, burns up the fret board with creative solos for the new songs and re-imagined versions for the older material. A beefed up production helps give Burning Point's sound a huge, crunchy kick. This is by far the heaviest stuff Ahonen has cooked up in some time.

I'd like to see Burning Point and Ahonen continue in this vein of crunchy, Germanic Power Metal and leave the heavily keyboard-influenced stuff to his other bands. Landing Valo is a coup and gives this already talented crew a shot at greatness.