The God Machine

Preparing to write this review, I realized that in nearly 24 years since I created this web site, I never once reviewed a Blind Guardian album. That's kind of weird. Then again, I was never as crazy about them as so many people are. I do own several of their albums, but they're not albums I tend to go back to. Anyway... I've been listening to The God Machine off and on for the past few months and I really like it. It's very melodic yet aggressive power/speed metal filled with songs that just call for you to sing along with Hansi, whose distinctive singing style is instantly recognizable since their first album, yet I think he's just been getting better over the years. Strong, powerful, catchy vocal lines are omnipresent here. The music is quite melodic, but it's fast and crunchy as hell, with heaviness to boot. There's that "happy-ish" vibe often associated with power metal that pops up here and there, but overall it's pretty aggressive and sometimes kind of dark—my favourite parts as they're the ones that feel more deep and really draw you in. Overall, this is 51 minutes of top-notch power metal from a band that hasn't lost its mojo.