I can never see why 'Axel Rudi Pell' gets such unfair criticism, so what if the format for every album is very similar. When he churns out consistent 'Melodic Metal' of this high calibre, who cares!. The formula for this release is simple, brilliant guitar work (as your would expect), superb melodic vocals and some great material to work with, and the result is another fabulous offering of crunching melodious 'Euro Metal'. If I had one criticism it would be that there are too many ballads, but unlike many other bands even these are pulled-off respectfully, without being dull and lifeless.

The brooding intro 'The Curse of the Chains' sets up the album, an atmospheric riff driven piece that leads into the cracking first track. 'Edge of the World' is a crossover between 'Deep Purple' and later 'Riot', a top rate, melodic, fuelled rocker, it contains a certain 70' Hard Rock feel, but brought up to date, with thundering guitars and crystal clear power vocals- an absolute treat. The tempo drops slightly for 'Coming Home' a track that just shouts out 'Scorpions', at times 'Johnny Gioeli' even sounds like 'Klaus Meine', but this is no bad thing, and the track comes together as a great mid paced rocker, complete with wizard guitar licks and hearty lyrics (Yngwie Malmsteen should listen to the way this track is put together and learn!). The ballad 'Live for the King' starts off a little pedestrian, but gradually builds into a hard rocking, vocal gem, with sweet solo and a great all round workmanlike performance. Next up is another ballad 'All the Rest of my Life' a slow and laid back affair that unfortunately is spoilt with some strange 'Seagull / screeching' overdubs accompanying some of the vocal sections, also a tad long winded at 8 minutes, but still a powerful song. Back to a blistering tempo with 'Follow the Sign' a slice of galloping excellence, with energetic rhythm, superb lyrics and 'Axel's' guitar solo, as always a choice piece of work. A darker approach is felt with the plodding 'Time of the Truth', which features many styles, there's definitely some 'Purple' in the mix, 'Gary Moore' and maybe a little 'Dio', it all comes together however into a quality track, that's held together by more top vocals. I'm less impressed with 'Heartbreaker', Its just too slow and predictable for my liking. Much better is 'Saint of Fools' a spirited sing-a-long, complete with great lyrics and lively rhythm, also checkout 'Axel's' solo, great stuff. The album close with a very strong ballad 'Under the Gun', which features a brilliantly sung chorus and great passion displayed throughout.

If 'Melodic Metal' is your 'bag', like it is mine, you won't be disappointed with this jewel.