Now this is some fucking kick-ass heavy metal, people! Check out Act Of Defiance.My favorite genre of metal may be progressive but I'll always have a soft spot for thrash and speed metal from the stately days of yore (the 80s). And Act of Defiance is some damn fine metal that fills me - thrills me - with headbangings never felt before. Why two Poe references in just the first paragraph? I have no idea, just go with it.
Seriously though this is killer tuneage from two erstwhile members of Megadeth, Chris Broderick (guitar) and Shawn Drover (drums). And joined by bassist Matt Bachand (Shadows Fall/Times Of Grace) and vocalist Henry Derek (Scar The Martyr), their debut album, Birth And The Burial, is an opening salvo of metal riffage one should not take lightly. This is a bad-ass album, metalheads.
Opener Throwback sets the thrashy tone right away with a moshabilty rating of 11 (out of 10), and while there's a lot of that headbanging goodness (Thy Lord Belial, Dead Stare, et al), it's not all 80s skateboard park insanity. Tracks like Poison Dream and Obey The Fallen have a grander, gothic atmosphere like classic old school metal bands of my youth - with the former track's solo a master class in sweep picking. And Refrain And Re-Fracture's sweet, dark acoustic arpeggiations that brood under a twin guitar riffage are a haunting reminder of many a happy night spent jamming to Testament. I'm fucking loving this album, man.
The Bottom Line: The synchronicity between Broderick and Drover belies their years in the trenches together, and Derek's vocals transition easily between the death growls and more melodic choruses. And it's perhaps his tenure as guitarist for Shadows Fall that makes Matt Bachand such a rock solid bass man, but in any case, this is a band I hope sticks around for more releases like this heavy masterpiece. Bravo.
- Genghis laments the improbablity that this outfit will tour his hometown...
Thursday, October 22, 2015 at 12:14PM 
Tonight, we chew the fat with Jens Johansson, who's one bad mofo on the keys, tell you what.Ragman chats with the one and only Jens Johansson who made a name for himself by playing with some of the best guitarists in the business (Malmsteen, Tolkki, Holdsworth, Shawn Lane, Mike Stern, any of those ring a bell?) and by just being an all around bad-ass keyboardist, be it power metal or jazz fusion. Join us as Jens gabs about how Stratovarius managed after Timo Tolkki left as well as future plans.
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