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│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
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│ P R E S E N T S │
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│ + Serious Black - Mirrorworld-(IUCP-16249) + │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Information ║ │
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│║ ║ │
│║ Release Date.Jan-07-2018 Encoder......L3.98.4 -V0 --lowpas ║ │
│║ Genre........Heavy Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year.........2016 Khz/Bitrate..44,1/ Br ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ripper.......anthem Songs........15 ║ │
│║ Covers.......Yes Url... n/a ║ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Notes ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Serious Black Rating : You Decide! ║ │
│║ Album : Mirrorworld-(IUCP-16249) Label : Spiritual Beas ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Description : ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Serious Black was conceived in 2014 with the ║ │
│║ likes of Urban Breed (ex-Bloodbound, ex-Tad ║ │
│║ Morose, Project Arcadia and others), Mario ║ │
│║ Lockhert (ex-Visions of Atlantis) Thomem Stauch ║ │
│║ (Savage Circus, ex-Blind Guardian) and Roland ║ │
│║ Grapow (Masterplan, ex-Helloween) joining ║ │
│║ forces, to form what we often call a ║ │
│║ ôsupergroupö. Their debut album, æAs Daylight ║ │
│║ BreaksÆ, was a very fun and accessible form of ║ │
│║ power metal and quickly stole the hearts of many ║ │
│║ euro-power fans, including myself. Being a ║ │
│║ sucker for Urban Breedûwho I think is one of the ║ │
│║ best power metal vocalists of all time û I was ║ │
│║ very pleased to hear that this was not just a ║ │
│║ one-time wonder and Serious Black was in the ║ │
│║ process of releasing another album with less ║ │
│║ than a year of wait. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ There were considerable changes in the lineup, ║ │
│║ though, as Grapow and Stauch retired from the ║ │
│║ band, with heavy hitters Bob Katsionis ║ │
│║ (Constantine, Firewind and 500 other acts) and ║ │
│║ Alex Holzwarth (Rhapsody of Fire) filling the ║ │
│║ (big) shoes in the guitar and drumming ║ │
│║ departments, respectively. æMirrorworldÆ will be ║ │
│║ available on September 9th via AFM Records, ║ │
│║ continuing where æAs Daylight BreaksÆ left off ║ │
│║ musically. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The experience begins with a short intro û ║ │
│║ commonly adopted in power metal bands û followed ║ │
│║ by the explosive ôAs Long as IÆm Aliveö, a song ║ │
│║ that you may be familiar with, having been ║ │
│║ released not so long ago as a single. The tune ║ │
│║ mainly follows the steps of ôI Seek No Other ║ │
│║ Lifeö as a bombastic fast-paced opener with a ║ │
│║ catchy melody, which turns it into one of the ║ │
│║ best tracks of the album. ôCastor Skiesö slows ║ │
│║ down but keeps the energetic pace in a lead- ║ │
│║ driven tune and a melodic chorus. A good ║ │
│║ follow-up and extremely well executed, ║ │
│║ especially by Katsionis and Dominik Sebastian ║ │
│║ providing a good amount of virtuosity. Sadly, ║ │
│║ the ball drops a bit in ôHeartbroken Soulö and ║ │
│║ ôDying Heartsö; the first one is a power-ballad, ║ │
│║ and after a few listens becomes sort of ║ │
│║ disposable, mainly because it breaks the ║ │
│║ atmosphere and feels like a mechanic song made ║ │
│║ for commercial purposes. The second one has a ║ │
│║ rather strange arrangement with Jan Vacik doing ║ │
│║ the vocal lines at a lower key to match the ║ │
│║ instruments. Both of them, though, are not weak ║ │
│║ enough to ruin the whole experience. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ And then, in another strange turnaround, comes ║ │
│║ ôYouÆre Not Aloneö. I warn you: keep clear of ║ │
│║ this song if you hate having a chorus stuck in ║ │
│║ your head like lice on a 5-year old child. ║ │
│║ Perfect-pace, the right amount of riffs, a very ║ │
│║ cool solo and an awesome groovy atmosphere fill ║ │
│║ the track, the best of the bunch by far, in my ║ │
│║ opinion. The title-track comes next and, along ║ │
│║ with ôDying Heartsö, is a song that contains a ║ │
│║ lot of elements from modern AOR bands like ║ │
│║ Nordic Union or Phantom 5, which I most ║ │
│║ definitely donÆt like, but curiously enough ║ │
│║ bodes well for the tune. IÆm not saying that ║ │
│║ ôMirrorworldö is an AOR song, but there are ║ │
│║ things like the distortion of the guitars and ║ │
│║ the groovy-like construction that add to the ║ │
│║ modernity of the sound and provide that type of ║ │
│║ similarity. ôState of My Despairö and ôThe ║ │
│║ Unborn Never Dieö are two quality tracks that ║ │
│║ close the album in a good fashion, but none of ║ │
│║ them brings anything spectacular to the table. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Great execution, crystal clear production and ║ │
│║ talented musicians make Serious Black a reliable ║ │
│║ and fun band to listen. Urban Breed is something ║ │
│║ special and everything he puts his hands on is ║ │
│║ worth checking out, and this sort of modern ║ │
│║ approach to European power metal is luring more ║ │
│║ and more attention every day. Despite being a ║ │
│║ very accessible album, æMirrorworldÆ suit a ║ │
│║ specific niche of the heavy metal community. ║ │
│║ Those who twist their noses to modern types of ║ │
│║ production and songwriting will most likely ║ │
│║ steer away from this, while the power metal fan ║ │
│║ and the more casual listener will get a lot of ║ │
│║ spins out of it. Serious Black will most ║ │
│║ definitely not sweep you off your feet with ║ │
│║ deep, meaningful insights in the form of music, ║ │
│║ but rest assured that æMirrorworldÆ is ║ │
│║ guaranteed fun, as power metal should be. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Review written by Bruno Medeiros for ║ │
│║ www.metalwani.com ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Urban breed - Vocals ║ │
│║ Mario Lochert - Bass ║ │
│║ Jan Vacik - Keyboards ║ │
│║ Bob Katsionis - Guitars ║ │
│║ Dominik Sebastian - Guitars ║ │
│║ Alex Holzwarth - Drums ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Tracklist ║ │
│╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │
│ │
│ 01 - Breaking The Surface [01:52] │
│ 02 - As Long As I┤m Alive [04:02] │
│ 03 - Castor Skies [04:24] │
│ 04 - Heartbroken Soul [03:46] │
│ 05 - Dying Hearts [05:02] │
│ 06 - You┤re Not Alone [03:42] │
│ 07 - Mirrorworld [05:03] │
│ 08 - Emotional Black Mail (Bonus Track) [04:08] │
│ 09 - The Life That You Want (Bonus Track) [04:29] │
│ 10 - State Of My Despair [04:28] │
│ 11 - The Unborn Never Die [03:53] │
│ 12 - This Macjine Is Broken (Bonus Track) [04:35] │
│ 13 - Hello Moon (Bonus Track) [04:12] │
│ 14 - Goodbye My Angel (Bonus Track) [04:34] │
│ 15 - Irreverence And Pride (Bonus Track) [04:17] │
│ │
│ Total Length : [62:27 minn │
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│ ╔═════════════════════╗ │
│ ║ Greetings To: ║ │
│ ╚═════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ Too all people who contributes to make this │
│ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │
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│ │
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