Plague-House Puppet Show

Ahhh, my 80s craving soul has been satisfied again for another three quarters of an hour. After the very promising (albeit tad generic) debut Delirium Veil, Finlands Twilightning has done a considerable change in direction with their material. The Strato-esque power metal galloping has been largely put aside in the favor of massive doses of classic eighties hard rock, massive W.A.S.P-esque choruses and Priest-like soloing. Some might take this kind of “regression” as a bad thing, understandably so, but Ive never been one to shun recycling elements from the history of metal – just as long as it sounds killer, and boy howdy, does it ever do that here. As I said, massive choruses – MASSIVE! Not only is singer Heikki Pöyhiä solidifying his place as one of the most overtly capable and excellent metal throats in Finland (and the world for that matter) alongside Marco Hietala and Timo Kotipelto, but the arrangements themselves are so fan-fuckin-tastic and above all else CATCHY. Right from the beginning from the humongous groove - and mosh/sing-along-factor that is off the charts - of the title track, a barrage of memorable melodies and gang-choruses jump on me. Into Treason and The Fiend – awesome songs by the way - tone the tempo down just a bit before Victim Of Deceit crashes through the gates with speed and power that I could easily compare with gems like Priests Freewheel Burning, GnR´s Welcome To The Jungle or Dios Don’t Talk To Strangers. Painting The Blue Eyes fills the ballad spot on the record respectably, but I must say that this is the most mediocre tune here – the famous feeling of “flying high” that I get from awesome ballads like Testaments The Legacy doesn’t hit me with this. But this little slump is quickly diverted with the brilliant rocking trio of In The Fervors Frontier – Fever Pitch – Diamonds Of Mankind. Each one of them equipped with lead melodies, guitar licks, choruses and fast grooves that should annihilate any fan of classic metal. Riot Race plays refreshingly with changing tempos a bit while Lubricious Thoughts closes them album in fine manner, with killing guitar riffs and solos, and of course a given with this album, the mega-infectious chorus. The keyboards provide mostly some excellent backgrounds, even though they break away for short solos here and there, but not excessively. Their sounds are very eighties as well. I think almost every kind of classic keyboard sound is used here with the BIG exception of the sugary synth sound most familiar from Van Halens all-mighty Jump. Using that synth sound would have added at least five points to the already high score:) The production is excellent and the rhythm section solid as a rock, everything topped of with Pöyhiäs magnificent vocal work. If released 20 years ago with a good marketing machine behind it, this album would have been huge. The consistency is something that I simply admire and mosh to frequently, be it in the street or in the shower. This album fits all moods. Highly recommended listening for all fans of classic melodic metal and hard rock.