Swedish power metal band PERSUADER’s fourth full-length release, The Fiction Maze, is the best BLIND GUARDIAN album since Imaginations From The Other Side. Er ... uh ... well, all kidding aside, it’s impossible to write this review without noting the obvious similarities between the two bands. While listening to the album, sometimes this can be a distraction. Other times, the Swedes try to prove that they can stand on their own two feet as far the music goes. Vocalist Jens Carlsson, also of SAVAGE CIRCUS, who also remarkably sound like Blind Guardian, has a voice so similar to Hansi Kürsch that it’s uncanny. But to label Carlsson as a deliberate clone would be a disservice, as he is a very talented vocalist in his own right. He takes a grittier approach than the German metal crooner, while the band has an edgier sound with speedier parts. On its 11 tracks, The Fiction Maze is a combination of everything the band has created through its previous releases; glorious harmonies, powerful melodies, soaring vocals, heavy riffing and pulsating rhythms. Elements such as the Arabian-tinged melodies on ‘Son Of Sodom’ and ‘Falling Faster,’ plus the Spanish acoustic guitar intro of the title track, create a different flavor to the band’s overall European power metal formula. However, the obvious downfall to The Fiction Maze is the confusion that you might actually be listening to a Blind Guardian album. Although Persuader tries a few new things on The Fiction Maze, they ultimately play it a little too safe and cozy.