Cage
Hell Destroyer Cd Review
Im not real big into concept story albums but I dont mind them either since I rarely pay attention to the lyrics, especially when it comes to metal. Most modern power metal, classic metal usually have fantasy themes such as dragons, mythical lands, magical powers and other stuff thats pretty goofy if you really think about it. This 4th album by the group Cage is no exception either. The story throughout the album is about someone finding the Christhammer (the hammer used to crucify Jesus) and then using it destroy the Devil and Hell. If you are not familiar with Cage their sound is similar to Manowar, Judas Priest, Savatage with a mix of more modern bands such as Persuader, Iced Earth etc...
The lineup is:
Sean Peck (Vocals)
Dave Garcia (Lead Guitars)
Anthony Wayne McGinnis (Lead Guitars)
Mike Giordano (Bass Guitars)
Mike Nielsen (Drums)
The drums and guitars are tight, the riffs are crushing, and leads are awesome, but the true highlight of the album are the vocals by Sean Peck. Sean is slowly becoming recognized as one of the leading metal vocalists of the new century. His voice is original with hints of Halford but a little more raspy like bands such as Iced Earth and Persuader. With a smooth delivery he can belt out with the best of them. Throughout the album there are some nice band vocals in the choruses that help compliment Sean perfectly.
I personally think that album # 3, Darker than Black from 2003 is their highlight album so far but this one is getting closer the more I listen to it. You definitely get your fill with 14 full lenth tracks and several interludes setting up the story, which equals 70 plus minutes of music. So far this is easily my favorite power/classic metal album of the year so far. On a scale of 1-10 I give this a ogre skull crushing 8.6