SEASONS OF THE WOLF - Once in a blue moon (2007, USA, private pressing, 56.38)
01 Wings of doom
02 Snaggletooth
03 Nikhedonia
04th Ghost woman
05th In the shadows
06th Behind the eyes of evil
07th The reaper
08. Battle scars
09th Alien landscapes
10th The edge of time
11th Peace on earth
12th Name your poison
This is not the first album by American band SEASONS OF THE WOLF, but, let me count times, already the fourth release and it has somehow changed that much. Barry "Skully" Waddell, his brother Wes and her team thunder an unconventional, typical American power metal with dark, but very catchy melodies and profound acting keyboards. The latter should not be overstated, because you put the weight clearly on the very natural sounding guitar from Skully. The sound is really nothing to complain about, perhaps at times some clinical drums, in which one notices but the game here, that there is a person. But even that is well accommodated in the mix. After two quick swing, groovy metal anthems on the first two grid positions for the third piece suddenly to SOTW. Quiet, dark intro on the guitar with subtle keyboard accompaniment, then a slower beat, slow guitars, mysterious keyboard runs and evocative vocals. Wes Waddell sings mostly in medium-altitude, very emotionally charged goes, but we also higher. The song is down to a short passage dark and morbid. They were now "Wings of Doom," "Snaggletooth" and "Nikhedonia.
What comes next? "Ghost Woman." Ah, okay. The opening Rock riffing ever huge, the verse has a very catchy phrase sent the speeds can be varied. American Melodic Metal trimmed to gloom? The song may seem odd lot. The organs of the scrubbing Keyboard riffs give the song a majestic aura. Skully solos in the classic heavy rock style and should birds such as Michael Schenker loose play facing the wall. A potential Minihit, which is also the unconventional style Wes Waddell and his scream-quality voice to the heights affect them. Rob Halford let's leave that one go through, right? Really cool!.
The intro to 'In The Shadows "appears jazzy, no, the groovy song seems more mainstream. Blues, with offbeat rhythms, but very cool melody in verse and especially the chorus. Is a difference, is staging memorable and emotional. Although SEASONS OF THE WOLF invent the music never new, you never really think that their songs appear a familiar. That's their advantage. "In the shadows" is then a solo on a little more energetic, Skully goes out all the stops here. The classic rock but remains preserved and the ballad-feeling also.
Without the vocals would have here from the Pink Floyd of the late 80s, David Bowie of the early 80s, may possibly be the Rolling Stones at the same time. Non-Metal, more than pop rock, but made breathtakingly beautiful.
between earthy mashed Metal and slow, darker parts moving "Behind the eyes of evil", which also reunited majestic riffs, leads and macabre synth runs, and Wes Weddell inimitable voice. Actually a good hard rocker that sounds wacky but wonderful by a massive dose of mysticism and Doomfeeling. SEASON OF THE WOLF like to play around with classic hard rock themes, but they make it to their own style means.
"The Reaper" is following "Behind the eyes of evil" and, with powerful verse melody, thrilling riffs in turn, hard rock style, powerful organ, keyboards, and Wes' emotional vocals for Hitstimmung. The part has character and soul. You may have the chorus even more pronounced may be, still catchy, but those are superficial things. Skully brushed his guitar riffs from various nackenzerbrechende neck.
A metal anthem with galloppierendem Leitriff is then "Battle scars" and here is this anthemic power chorus, like so many bands this year to tackle him again and again and fail miserably trying. Although "Battle scars" of the typical heavy metal song here, shine SEASONS OF THE WOLF. They want to stretch their fists to the sky and loudly sing along. Horny, wild solo by Skully, then a short, but acquired by the synth passage, the guitar in and fry someone speaks with a distorted voice on that subject. Classic 80's style. The band re-enters and plays a doomy - slow section that Skully again refined his confused leads, then it goes back to the galloppierende main theme of the piece. Why can a Rock'n'Rolf not it? Why can not something like MANOWAR? Why me is the new face of SEASONS OF THE WOLF disk in such a matter?
staccato keyboard solo and a hammer to form the beginning of "Alien Landscapes". While the spacey synths give the Touch, the Solo provides earthiness. The drumming begins and it continues now as the song gets a trance-like expression. The song suggests at some point in a spherical space rock, Hawkwind would also well on its last wheel to face.
Rothorn and dark rocking one gets to "The Edge of Time" and it remains the case, here is earthy, but dark and thunder rocked that one's hair stand on end and the whole body is covered with goose bumps. Killer synth solo in the middle!
"Peace on earth" is energetic, aggressive vocals with abgeflogenem effect. Wes complains more than he sings, but with the incredibly haunting voice. The overall expression of the piece is again spacey nature. A stapf final part with the cool bass runs and thrilling beat takes over. Developing into a majestic moment of sheer Dooms and then gets back on track. The song puts tremendous increase in intensity, seems to almost explode, explodes into the final analysis in space-age noise and is gone.
And at the end of the album we groove rock "name your poison" with space rock organs, total suspended the song all the time around you and really typical hard rock vocal line you heckled normal. Skully elicits fine guitar riffs and lead harmonies. It can thus also conjure heavy rock of earthy yet exciting music, eh? You go perfectly with this song, the beats grab you, you muddle.
leaves you quite breathless now this album will need a few seconds of recovery time. Then you're back there and want more of it fully, more, much more. Killer disc and absolute recommendation!