JOHN STEEL - Freedom

February 20, 2015, 9 years ago

(Independent)

Kelley Simms

Rating: 7.0

review heavy metal john steel

JOHN STEEL - Freedom

Bulgarian-based metal band John Steel was originally formed in 2007 as an all-instrumental band called the Ivan Stalev Guitar Show. The band went through many trials and tribulations and band member changes. In 2012, the band still without a singer, started negotiations with Blaze Bayley (ex- Iron Maiden, Wolfsbane) to record an album. Three years later, Freedom finally sees the light of day. A lot of preparation, negotiations and heartache I’m sure, went into this album. On the seven of the nine tracks (including two bonus tracks) that Bayley sings on, he shows off his unique range, and a few tracks even have hints of Maiden-like harmonies.


The ominous atmosphere of CD-opener “War” starts things off with some haunting guitar melodies. Blaze’s voice is very prominent and powerful, but the underlying spoken word voices become a little distracting throughout its two-plus minute duration. The title track has that Maiden vibe I expressed earlier with some enlightening lyrics. Bayley’s nasally, high-end pitch combines well with Stalev’s and Viktor Georgiev’s rich guitar tone, sharp riffing and tasteful soloing. “The Crow”, with its anthemic chorus, ’80s-styled riffing and Bayley’s trademark vocals, makes it one of the standout tracks on the album. However, there are just too many mid-paced tempos and not enough variation or transitional riffs within each track. Bonus tracks “Angel” (an old song from Stalev) and “Leviathan Rises” (a Nephwrack cover song) are sung by Dilian Amaudov, and both are brilliantly performed. The band has finally recruited a lead vocalist and are in the process of making a new album, which will be interesting to see where John Steel go from here.



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