When Greek band Orion's Reign set's forth to sing of sagas of old, they start with one of the most epic vocal openings ever! Time it yourselves in "Elders Blood", not only did Dan Vasconcelos hold that scream for 26 seconds, he kept getting higher! His range is perfect for this band. As for the music itself? I think it would be perfect for the score of World of Warcraft (a habit I finally dropped after years of feeding the addiction) Grand in scale and ambition, I cannot help but sing along (as is the case with my nephew) at least when we can hit the notes. "The Gravewaker" I feel highlighted Noel Kardaris abilities on percussion, never falling into the marathon race of speed double kick-drums. Being able to kick out complex rhythms while keeping a rock steady beat is a trick very few can do. The speed picks up on "The Undefeated Gaul" (I always think of Asterix and Obelix when I hear anything about gual!) The dueling guitars are amazing, making my wrists and fingers hurt just listening to it. Michael Batistatos  and George Thanasoglou are well suited to push each other to limits no mere mortal can get close to. (I like them is what I'm saying)

Kirk Gazouleas has convinced me that even though there is still a slight artificial sound to it, keyboards can now be used to give a metal band a full symphonic back up, allowing Metal to take it's rightful place as Classical Music's legitimate heir. Whether used in the Neo-Renaissance style of "Nostos", or the Marshall beat of "Freedom is not Negotiable" the ivories never seem over bearing but yet you cannot escape how significant they are to the base sound of this band. If there is a flaw on this CD, it's the bass. When a guitar player assumes the duties of the bottom end, they lack the insight a dedicated bassist brings to a band. Most people aren't able to notice tiny flaws, guitar players included. A dedicated bassist will fill in those flaws, adding even more dimension to the music. When the bass is following note for note, it gets lost in the mix. Metallica's ...And Justice for All is a worst case example, but at least on Scores of War you can still at least hear the bass.

Flowing and grandiose, Orion's Reign's sophomore effort is an album I actually played for a french horn player from the local symphony who poo poo's on metal in general. She enjoyed it very much, actually requesting it when she came to my birthday last week. High praise indeed!