I had the pleasure of reviewing ARRAYAN PATH in 2016 with their release "Chronicles Of Light". At the time, I was completely unaware of the band but since them have become very well acquainted with their music. As it was one of my first reviews, I felt that when it was time, I NEEDED to review the next one. So with the release of "Dawn Of Aquarius" I finally have that chance.

So how does it stack up against the last effort? Pretty damn well.

For anyone who has heard ARRAYAN PATH before, you aren't going to be surprised here. It's more epic and theatrical power metal, with soaring clean vocals, catchy, heavy guitar riffs, and more of what makes power metal what it is. It may not do much to stand out by being unique, but it does what it does very well, and we can't really complain about that.
The vocals of Nicholas Leptos are what do stand out here. His powerful vocals combined with the style of music and the fantastic song-writing is a big part of what's so good about ARRAYAN PATH.

"Dawn Of Aquarius" starts off well with "Equilibrium", a song that serves as a brilliant introduction for the album, and for anyone who doesn't know what to expect. By the end of this first song, you'll have a pretty good idea. The album continues along with great songs one after the other, but the first one to really stand out for me was "She Who Is Primordial Wisdom". The introductory riffs are heavy and dark, that beat is driving, the vocals are seething. The entire thing is brilliant, and made me need to turn the volume up. The instrumentals stood out in "Cremation Grounds", with a haunting feel and beautiful guitar work. Just like the last album, the penultimate track is a ballad, and just like the last album, it's one of the best songs on it. "Guardian Angel" is one of those prototypical power metal ballads, that seems mostly designed so show off exactly how good the bands vocalist is. With a good ballad, the vocals should shine, and "Guardian Angel" is no exception.
"Garland Of Skulls" closes us out with a good song, but it doesn't quite feel like an album closer. It's good, just doesn't seem very final.

Just as I thought it would be, "Dawn Of Aquarius" is a great album. It doesn't break any molds, but at this point in a bands repertoire, it probably shouldn't. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? ARRAYAN PATH have worked out their sound, and it's a damn good sound, if you like one album of theirs you're very likely to like them all. That said, there are some stand out songs as I've mentioned, like there always will be. Do yourself a favour and check this album out, and if you like it, go back and listen to the rest of their music. ARRAYAN PATH are an overlooked gem, and I can't wait for the next album.

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