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│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
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│ P R E S E N T S │
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│ + Crystal Ball - Hard Impact (Jap. Ed.) + │
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│║ Release Information ║ │
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│║ Release Date.Aug-05-2013 Encoder......L3.97 -V2 --vbr-new ║ │
│║ Genre........Hard Rock Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year.........2001 Khz/Bitrate..44,1/ Br ║ │
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│║ Ripper.......anthem Songs........13 ║ │
│║ Covers.......Yes Url... www.crystal-ball.ch ║ │
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│║ Release Notes ║ │
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│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Crystal Ball Rating : You Decide! ║ │
│║ Album : Hard Impact (Jap. Ed.) Label : Pony Canyon ║ │
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│║ Description : ║ │
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│║ Another release from power metal's golden age, ║ │
│║ Hard Impact, the second album from Swiss ║ │
│║ metallers Crystal Ball, was one of the first ║ │
│║ attempts to fuse AOR with European power metal, ║ │
│║ and though bands like Domain and Evidence One ║ │
│║ went on to release albums that owed a lot to ║ │
│║ this, it holds up even now. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ All you need to know about Crystal Ball is they ║ │
│║ sound like Helloween playing AOR. Vocalist Mark ║ │
│║ Sweeney is a dead ringer for Andi Deris, and ║ │
│║ even the production sounds like Master Of The ║ │
│║ Rings. Mostly, Crystal Ball go for mid-paced ║ │
│║ stompers full of simple but foot-tapping riffs, ║ │
│║ tasty and stylish solos, and choruses that find ║ │
│║ the band shouting the song titles with about a ║ │
│║ million backing singers. Somehow it works, and ║ │
│║ through this formula they manage to produce hit ║ │
│║ after hit. Opener "Soul Mate" has a gloriously ║ │
│║ cheesy hook, while "Own Way" is a more ║ │
│║ traditional heavy-hitter with a Maiden-esque ║ │
│║ riff. "Crystal Ball" and "Passion" are the best ║ │
│║ songs here; this is where the band let down ║ │
│║ their guard and bust out the double bass pedal. ║ │
│║ These songs have Helloween written all over ║ │
│║ them, and the mix of hard rock guitars and power ║ │
│║ metal grandiosity works wonders. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Those who don't mind a little pomp and a slight ║ │
│║ nod to the poodle-perm days of yore will get a ║ │
│║ kick out of this and later albums by the band. ║ │
│║ It's unconventional, surprising, and above