iDentity
Alpha Tiger
•
January 8, 2015
ALPHA TIGER are a power metal quintet that hails from Germany and formed in 2007 under the name SATIN BLACK, and then revamped under the current name ALPHA TIGER. They have already released quite a few albums, and with their last critically acclaimed album "Beneath the Surface", this release has a standard to reach, and it has been reached.
Starting the album is "Intro" with the theme song of the Eurovision (I admit that it took me over fifteen minutes to pinpoint which song it was - eventually I needed to type out the notes into Google to find out) with a buildup of machine gun and rocket fire, explosions, people yelling and being hurt, the theme gets stuck for a few seconds, and then loudly ripped away into the wailing guitars of the next song "Lady Liberty". This song features a very sharp vibe of early QUEENSRYCHE records that might start this album on the wrong foot for lacking freshness. "Long Way of Redemption" starts the part of the album that, in my opinion, finally the band showed its true colors. The band started to sound like a beast of its own instead of a remake of older power metal bands, and the album keeps building up into a really solid form that does sound fresh and vibrant. The album continues into my favorite track, "We Won't Take It Anymore", with its heavy and solid groove and its anthem-like lyrical theme.
One thing you can't ignore is the quality of skill and musicality the band mates show; Peter Langforth and Alexander Backasch's skillful control of the guitars, allowing very fun solos and doubling melodies, David Schleif shows his skill on the drums and ties the rhythm very solidly, Dirk Frei keeps the solidity of the album with his skillful control of the bass and holds the guitars and drums on point. Of course, you can't forget Stephan Dietrich's vocals on the album, with his impressive sky-high vocal range, he brings an authentic shine into the music.
ALPHA TIGER's sound is deeply rooted in the golden age of mid-Eighties/early-Nineties power metal, as solid as it is the band struggles to find its own place and identity to differ it from its forefathers, but this release starts to allow the band to come forward with new great songs, and it is a big stride toward the direction of innovation. Hopefully, this big step will help the band build up its reputation in the European scene.<
6 / 10
Had Potential

"iDentity" Track-listing:
1. Intro
2. Lady Liberty
3. Scripted Reality
4. Long Way of Redemption
5. Identity
6. We Won't Take It Anymore
7. Revolution in Progress
8. Closer Than Yesterday
9. Shut Up & Think
10. This World Will Burn
Alpha Tiger Lineup:
Stephan "Heiko" Dietrich - Vocals
Peter Langforth - Guitar
Alexander Backasch - Guitar
Dirk Frei - Bass
David Schleif - Drums
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