Savior Never Cry

In the light of Atsushi Kuze joining Jupiter, his works with Concerto Moon have been receiving more than a few spins in my household. I have been fairly critical of Kuze’s competent, but somewhat Dokken-ish voice in the past, but there is one Concerto Moon album on which he is really pushed to his best performance thus far and that is ‘Savior Never Cry’. Of course, the fact that the band sounds at their heaviest and most aggressive here works miracles as well. The fact that their classy, hardrock-inspired melodicism is not sacrificed is an impressive achievement in its own right.

Somehow, I think I prefer Concerto Moon without a keyboard player. The keys are indispensable for their early progressive hardrock meets neoclassical power metal approach, but on ‘Savior Never Cry’, band leader Norifumi Shima’s riffing takes center stage. His sound appears to be just a tad heavier too, to the point where it’s hard to believe that he’s actually playing a guitar with single coils. This powerful, bottom-heavy sound really pushes Kuze to a performance that foregoes his usual gentle rasp in favor of a throaty, full-force approach that is not too dissimilar to what Yukio Morikawa does with Anthem.

Concerto Moon certainly proves that the first strike is deadly. The opening title track of the album’s predecessor ‘Angel Of Chaos’ was already impressive, but ‘Savior Never Cry’ really has the band firing on all cylinders. Shima’s riffs are thick and tasteful, Masayuki Osada’s drumming is pulsating and punishing and Kuze is inspired to do some of his most intense screaming yet. The rumbling double kick work and heavy riffing is continued on the following ‘Straight From The Heart’, which I consider one of Concerto Moon’s most underrated tracks to date. Its eighties Dio-esque vibe is simply irresistible.

From then on, the album does not get quite as heavy anymore, though the speedy closer ‘Slash The Lies’ – which inexplicably only is a bonus track – comes pretty close. The heaviness is hardly missed though. The fact that Shima (mostly) has to fill his end of the sonic spectrum by himself results in very powerful hardrock and heavy metal tracks like ‘Lay Down Your Life (To Be Free)’, ‘Over The Fear’ and the midtempo ‘In My Dream’. Even the ballad ‘Lovers Again’, often a weak point for Japanese bands, is surprisingly good. Only ‘The Shining Light Of The Moon’ is a little too watered down for my taste.

Norifumi Shima and Concerto Moon were obviously on a roll around the turn of the decade. ‘Angel Of Chaos’ is one of the band’s best albums, but ‘Savior Never Cry’ ups the ante in terms of heaviness, compositional quality and vocal performance. After the release of ‘Savior Never Cry’, Concerto Moon would continue in a somewhat more hardrock-oriented direction. Quite accomplished hardrock too, but after being infatuated with the almost ‘Painkiller’-like intensity of this album’s title track, it’s difficult to settle for something else. ‘Savior Never Cry’ is highly recommended to anyone who longs for the time when hardrock and heavy metal weren’t two separate things yet.

Recommended tracks: ‘Savior Never Cry’, ‘Straight From The Heart’, ‘Slash The Lies’

Originally written for my Kevy Metal weblog

Power metal fans should know about Concerto Moon, who have been around since 1996, as the three remaining band members from Kagawa, Japan form one of the genre’s most active bands in terms of releases. We can also count four live records, two EPs and two compilations among their vast and continuously growing discography. "Savior Never Cry" is a representative example of the band's powerful sound and is actually more professional and serious from an instrumental and lyrical point of view than the band name and album title might suggest.

The opener and title track makes quite clear what this band is about. They take no prisoners and offer a melodic, up-tempo track that should immediately appeal to fans of early Edguy or HammerFall, though Concerto Moon may have a few more edges. While the band includes a neoclassical shredding solo Timo Tolkki would be proud of and mixes an epic feeling with a massive dose of energy, the most outstanding thing about this band is probably the new vocalist. After Ozaki Takao (who sung on the band’s first three albums) and Inoue Takashi (who was present on albums four to eight), the volatile band line-up changed again, and new powerhouse singer Kuze Atsushi joined the band. He has a very powerful voice that compares favorably to the harder singers of the power metal genre like Tim “Ripper” Owens, Jorn Lande, or Jon Oliva. Sometimes he screams more than he sings, but this unrestrained energy fits well to the music, and it makes him sound rather unique. That’s what I call power metal with power! But these vocals are definitely a make-it or break-it element. You either really like the voice, or you may have some serious problems to really dig this band. Choose your camp.

The band also has its softer side, of course. While the first two songs sound like a perfect mixture of American and European power metal, the third track “The Shining Light Of The Moon” shows the band’s true origins. This song is a lot more theatrical, and offers a diversified and emotional vocal performance. The verses remain more aggressive, and the powerhouse drumming is even present in the chorus, but the opening and the chorus itself are much more melodic and…kitschy. These elements are something I have often heard in Japanese music, and this mixture works very well from a commercial point of view over there. Aggressive sections meet almost childish melodies, and the vocals driven by emotions and are quite dramatic and often overdone. This song could be the title song of a new anime series, but it could also be played in a Japanese metal pub. If you like bands such as X Japan, you will adore this song, almost without a doubt.

Throughout the entire album, the band mixes great melodies and stunning guitar solos with a few harder riffs and fairly straightforward songwriting with truly emotional and unique vocals. Even the bonus track, “Slash The Lights”, takes no prisoners and shows all of the aforementioned elements in one single killer anthem. Other bands would normally be proud to have this kind of song on their regular release, but Concerto Moon’s high quality release allows them to offer this strong piece of music as a bonus song only. If you feel some power metal bands are recently lacking power but you are still a fan of charming melodies, a few epic moments, fast shredding solos, powerful drumming, and all the other traditional trademarks, this band is for you. Keep your seat belt fasten and please enjoy your rollercoaster ride!

Originally written for Black Wind Metal