Conception! Damn it's been a long time since I heard such a good traditional metal album. I had the privilege of listening the band's demo (that included as I recall Last Of My Kind, Rise Of The Red Crescent Moon and Await The Champion if I'm not mistaken) and instantly knew that this will be a killer album whenever they managed to release it.
Who is CRESCENT SHIELD? The band started as a project of Michael Grant (ex-ONWARD) and Dan DeLucie (ex-Destiny's End). Soon Melanie Sisneros joined them on the bass while the puzzle was finished with Craig Anderson on the drums. Melanie and Craig are both well-experienced players as well. So what do you get with such classic metal background dream team? A LOT of metal I suppose.
Their debut album is old school. No doubt about it, even the front cover cries out such a thing. And why not? I have witnessed countless untalented acts trying to enliven the genre (most of them are from Germany by the way...), at least CRESCENT SHIELD members had a strong c.v. covering their back. But let me tell you something: this album really brakes bones. Songs like The Last Of My Kind are so massive while others like Await The Champion is sooooo damn old school that bring a tear in my eye.
As for Michael Grant I have said it before, he has such a distinct voice that can be classified in the category of love him or hate him. Nothing left to say for the wonderful album. Strongly recommended to fans of classic metal.