Stupid Dream was my first acquaintance with Mr Porcupine Wilson (barring his guest-starring in Opeth, of course; hot take: Opeth pre- and after- Wilson are as much two different bands as Oldpeth and Newpeth are, methinks) and Even Less was therefore the first thing I heard by PT. And I've mentioned it time and again that it is precisely the style they/he took on this album and the following
Lightbulb Sun that's IMHO the most fitting for the group, the proggy Brit-pop incarnation, the Blur on steroids, whatever.
Dream is not as "Brit-poppy" as
Lightbulb, it is generally more reminiscent of Floyd and other elder proggers, but the root is already present. Immediately catchy (a rarity for the band, to be honest), but high-concept nonetheless. What if Blur wanted to be Dream Theater, huh?
I know that sounds like a denigration, but it's actually a compliment. I like Even Less just as much as I did all those years ago when I heard it the first time. I like how the second half leaves the song-structure far behind but feels organic and well-connected to the previous part. I like the decidedly un-flashy, but enticing and emotional soloing. I don't like the reciting of the numbers in the end, but that's just a small part.
Now, Coheed and Cambria, that's a name I haven't heard for a long time. I remember liking them quite a bit back in the day of my prog-afficionado high. I like the sound and the guitar harmonies and some of the spidery-synth embellishments of the riff, but honestly it sounds a bit too
modern, the vocals, the melodies, the general attitude. In a way it ticks the same boxes as Porcupine Tree have, it also sounds rather radio poppy and I guess its at times almost pop-punk stylings might usually be more endearing to me than the almost clichéd "sad barefoot vegan boy from Kingston", but it is not. I find Even Less to have more of a staying power.
And I believe even the nominator
@Mosh will be quite understanding when I say I'll vote for the
Porcupine Tree here.
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Ah, another of my tracks. This is the second song by Dark Moor I picked and unlike the other one, this one I thought of (and knew I'd include) immediately - it is genuinely one of my favourite power metal songs ... and not just because my wife has Joan of Arc as one of her Patrons Saint (although
Architecture and Morality by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark is also one of the oft-spinned records in our household - and that's the one with
two singles named after the Maid of Orleans. Coincidence? I think not!)
I'm not a man searching the glory
I'm just the hand chosen to fight
And it's true that Dark Moor are in general criminally underrated... but also deserve it in a way. See, the first albums with Elisa Martin (one of the least typical female frontwomen I know) are some of the best power metal I know ... and over time they have fallen down incredibly hard, becoming not even a shadow of their former glory, turning into a quite terrible, wretched band.
But that's not what we talk about here.
The melody - and I mean both the guitars in the introduction and the chorus itself - sounds so
typical, so obvious, it feels so much like something from the back of your mind I have actually thought about and search for any power metal track this one might be aping, but I couldn't found any - it just
sounds like it has always existed.
Also, the guitarwork is again very cool, just like last time.
The whole
Hall of Olden Dreams is a must hear for anyone only slightly tolerant to power metal, IMHO; I had trouble picking this one track, I had, like, 4 other choices.
And of course, in the opposite corner is
another of my favourite bands, one of the best ever, in fact, doing a great job as well. Oh, yes, sure, I liked both
The Dark Secret and
Triumph or Agony very much (despite the former having not enough guitar, being sandwiched between two of Turilli's solo outlets and the latter being a tad meandering and way too ballad-heavy, IMHO),
The Frozen Tears of Angels still sounded like a return to form ... a return from mere excellence to actual greatness, going back to the level of
Power of the Dragonflame. It was heavier and more relentless, immediately catchy and gripping ... and On the Way to Ainor is definitely up to this par. The chorus is immediately memorable, the Turilli is Turilling as if there was no tomorrow (one of my favourite instrumental parts by the band? Dunno, might be, whatever) it's just so... thrilling.
Honestly, even as this is against my own nominee, I'll probably
wait and vote for the song that's going to be losing, because both need a lot of love, both should proceed, both are immensely beautiful.
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Speaking of power metal greatness, Angra's Carry On is once again the first song I heard by the band and it immediately captivated me - there's something underratedly awesome in even just the prechorus, let alone the chorus itself, once the song gets to it.
I am not the world's greatest fan of Andre Matos - he has that annoying type of head voice that Jon Arch, Kiske and others tend to annoy me with, but he has tons of personality nonetheless and this song is definitely his showcase. The buildup to the final shriek might be cheap in theory, but priceless in practice. (also, the cut off is weird only because it's supposed to be segueing into the next track on the album, don't let it taint your opinion on the track).
That said, the rest of the band are doing their best as well, especially the Bittencourt-Loureiro duo, even though I'm not usually a fan of the "each member in the spotlight" into which the instrumental part seems to devolve.
And I admit the drop with the bass and the fanfaresque keyboards is something I could live about - it is a good shift in the song as such, I like the idea, but the way it sounds is just way too jarring. Still, not enough to lessen my love for the track in any meaningful way.
The Dynazty song is quite okay, although once again the production is way too modern to my liking. And, well, it doesn't reperesent the inspiring, spiritual soar of the human soul Carry On does (and I don't mean merely the lyrics).
Angra, definitely. Also, thanks to
@Black Bart for nominating it, I thought it would be a given this track would be included.
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I don't have to worry to offend anyone's feelings in the next match, since both songs were nominated by
Night Prowler, so I'd say that Meshuggah have had their better moment here - it's nice to see I'm not the only one who thinks they seem to get better with age - whereas Behemoth, who should in theory be much more to my liking (being blackened death and all) are not vibing here with me at all (though the music video looks like
Diablo intro, tbh).
Also, I won't be voting for a song called Versvs Christvs unless I really
have to (because of the "v"s, silly! Oh, and also because the "versus Christus" was already done much better
by Jerry Goldsmith in the Omen soundtrack 
)
Meshuggah get my vote quite easily.
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I am not a fan of Slayer at their best, even... which their 2001 album decidedly is
not. I mean, I hardly liked you lot when you were trying to be brutal thrash, what's all this nu metal fucking around then? The sound, the vocals, the downtuned sound, it just doesn't work and doesn't fit either. It's just way too...
shouty. Sounds like Araya broke into the mixing room and made himself the most prominent part of the sound. And that's something he definitely shouldn't be - I mean, I can take a lot of thrashy bark, but his yells just grate on me. Shut up, mate, already.
On the contrary - and I hope that this forum which is somewhat way too much anti-Pantera biased will see the light and the truth - Fucking Hostile is one of the better offerings by Pantera. I realise that it is coming off a rather monotonous record (
Display is just variations on the same song, or at least feels that way really much; also the dry production doesn't help, making the songs sound much more samey than they already are), but FH is a breath of fresh air, really - it's
fast and aggressive in a completely different way from the rest of the album. It has a
very catchy chorus that sounds almost old-school and the way Anselmo overshouts the mic at the end is rather funny.
And it segues into the much calmer and sombre This Love on the record. Dunno, I've always liked the track and it is definitely the song I've been replaying the most from this particular album.
Pantera.
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Huh, the last match surprised me.
Okay, really, sometimes I feel Halford is the most overrated vocalist in all of metal - I admit his shtick of hiccupy yelps with random belts he was doing in the prime Priest days was quite unique and in a way captivating...and his timbre is unique and recognisable, but is it
enough? Compared with Dio who (although I dislike the adoration of him around here) feels like he was born to sing and enchant you with his voice, with his raw, unbridled
power.
That said, the song
@Perun nominated is definitely much more interesting, melodious and enticing than the generic opener from
Holy Diver. Now, against Rainbow in the Dark, the title track, Caught in the Middle... yeah, against those Heart of a Lion probably wouldn't stand a chance. But as it stands, I'm quite happily voting for
Halford.
(wait, now that I'm checking it out - is that a Priest song or a Halford song? I haven't heard it before and I haven't gone through Halford's discography and the Google is no help, so...)
