The Second Coming

Attacker's debut had just one flaw, and that was vocalist Bob Mitchell. Take Udo times five and imagine not being able to understand half the lyrics, and you'd have a good idea of how his vocals were (though I enjoy Udo, just imagine him having almost no control over his range/singing and so forth). Despite that "Battle at Helm's Deep" with its ever so majestic image and sound was still a fantastic album. This "Second Coming" continues that style, and this time they've replaced Bob Mitchell with John Leone (RIP), not only a better vocalist, but an amazing one.

Overall this album comes out a little tougher than their previous release. It just feels more powerful, heavier, and stronger all around. This is also enforced with the slightly thicker production. In style and sound it could be strongly compared to Liege Lord's release of the same year, "Master Control". With the tough sound, the engaging and complex rhythm's, minor elements of thrash abound, and an emphasis on more speed and crunch than your everyday metal band, this was and still is what true power metal is all about.

Vocalist John Leone's performance here is unprecedented. There really isn't anybody else I can think of to rightfully compare him too. He's not just steps, but leaps beyond what Bob Mitchell was capable of doing with the band. His range is pretty enormous, though for the most part he tends to stick to higher notes and those longer notes are no obstacle for him. Obviously wailing and shrieking is spread throughout all over the songs, like most of our beloved true metal. His wails are some of the best I've heard as they tend to be pretty vibrant, powerful, and captivating. The energy he gives off here is out the roof. Main Attacker guitarist Pat Marinelli and partner Tom D'Amico tear the place up with their incredible riffs and solo's. In all of this thick sound you can really feel that moody bass coming from Lou Ciarlo (Revelations of Evil is a great example of this). Again thanks to this tough production, Mike Sabatini hammers things down at ease with his impressive drum work that flows perfectly with the songs.

Finally, we get to that one and only single issue with this album. It should be obvious if you've glanced over the track listing ... the length. There's only eight tracks to be heard here, and it doesn't even make it to the 30 minute mark. This album is downright short as hell, and its kind of shame. The re-issue comes with a few demo's of some of the songs on here, but they're really nothing you'd be missing out on if you don't get to hear them. There's hardly a difference compared to the real songs, other than them being a little unpolished and weaker in the production (obviously?).

Regardless this is an amazing album through and through, and a perfect example of what power metal was like back in the day. Unlike their debut, there is practically no intro here and no use of keyboards anywhere (The Hermit had this. Admittedly I didn't have a problem with it at all, its not like I'm sad they didn't do anything like that here). They waste no time here at all. You'll be pulled in instantly and won't be able to let go until its over. Every track is easily a highlight. Along with the instrumental Octragon, totally catchy as heck and manages to not sound out of place at all. Fans of Omen, Liege Lord, early Jag Panzer, and so forth would worship this. Highly recommended.

I can only imagine what "Battle at Helm's Deep" would have sounded like with John Leone.