Waterlines

A few nights ago, I was drunk, on YouTube, and listening to Pagan's Mind. While scrolling through the related videos section, I drunkenly stumbled upon on a song of Excalion's. While they did not hold the particular, progressive metal, sound that I was hooked on at the moment, I found their sound to my liking. After listening to a few more songs, I decided to buy this album, Waterlines (it received the most acclaim). I am stunned by how incredible this is. Excalion's "Waterlines" is nothing short of flawless.

The first asset of the band's array of musical talent that pops right out are definitely the vocals. Jarmo Pääkkönen has a beautiful voice. His vocals aren't annoyingly high-pitched like Blind Guardian's and dont come off as really gruff like Sabaton's. His sound rests comfortable between the two styles and it sounds great. He has no problem going from a Matt Barlow-esque sound to a soaring, Lance King scream at the drop of a hat with his powerful lungs. His voice is given more pressence with the frequent use of layering.

Moving on to the instruments. The guitars are absolutely killer. The riffing is catchy, powerful, and is actually rather extraordinary. The guitarists Tero Vaaja (who also plays the bass) and Vesa Nupponen do a fine job of laying down the riff work and foundation for the music. The licks are memorable and most of the solos are just plain incredible. The keyboards are great. they augment the rest of the music and occasionally prove some solos throughout the album. The drumming, ill be honest, is just your standard power metal drumming. Henri Pirkkalainen does a great job, but there simply isn't much to say about his playing or sound.

Excalion's second album, Waterlines, is an excellent acheivement for the young band and is their best album to date. The album showcases incredible, soaring vocals, catchy-as-hell guitar riffs, and fantastic keyboard sections. This is a must have for any power metal fan.

All of the tracks are great, however, my favorites are "The Wingman," "Life On Fire," "Arriving As The Dark," and "Soaking Ground." "Yovartio" sounds like "Arriving As The Dark" only sung in Finnish.