New World Messiah

If you’re looking for a great power metal album, look no further. Nocturnal Rites have polished up their sound and honed it to a fine edge as “New World Messiah” easily stands up to the best work Blind Guardian have accomplished.

Many have indicted the group for taking a more refined approach to their music, but this simply adds to the overall impact that these songs have. As dynamics are of critical importance in this style of music, the polished sound lends further weight to the heavier parts and does much to bring out the superior vocal abilities of Jonny Lindkvist.

Not only is Lindkvist a great singer in terms of range and melody, he puts a great amount of power into his vocals that many of his contemporaries lack. Tracks like “Awakening” and “Against The World” hit the listener a s a full frontal metal assault, filled with strength and melody. The Middle Eastern flavored “Egyptica” is a mid-tempoed affair that results in some classic vibes reminiscent of classic Dio, with an updated twist.

On “End Of Days” you will hear some intense guitar melodies supported by an excellent display of talent courtesy of Owe Lingvall, who is just all over the place on this track. The bell on his ride cymbal was miked really well, it comes through, well, as clear as a bell. His ride work is really impressive; he really beats that thing like crazy! The guitar team of Nils Norberg and Fredrik Mannberg play exceptionally well together.

Their combined performance is tight, focused and riveting over the course of the record, particularly on the title track and the driving “One Nation”, where Norberg pulls off some cool sounding guitar synth effects. All in all, “New World Messiah” is a power metal masterpiece. This record in retrospect may go down as the best of Nocturnal Rites’ career.

Filled with hard-hitting anthems and moody, brooding songcrafting, “New World Messiah” has everything that fans have come to expect from Nocturnal Rites and more. A crucial release!