A friend of mine, once bonded to all the principles flowing around the term Heavy Metal, asked me what's up with the new blood in our - both, 'till the mid 90s - favorite music genre. It would be obvious to start chatting about dozens of bands, from Shadows Fall and Labyrinth to Bal Sagoth and Damageplan. Around that time, a promo issue of the upcoming Brainstorm album fell into my hands for review and - all of a sudden - the skies cleared up and I (re)obtained this lethal weapon against the armies of Hey-Metal's-Dead advocates (I gave my friend this album for a quickie - his comments are featured at the final paragraph).
German metallers Brainstorm were formed in 1989 by Torsten Ihlenfeld, Milan Loncaric and Dieter Bernert. The addition of Andreas Mailander, the release of three demo recordings (Marcus Jurgens as vocalist, later on) and the support role for acts like Stormwitch, Exciter and Rage resulted in the band's first record contract and the subsequent release of the Hungry (1997) album. Whoever purchased this CD back then, surely remembers the pure excitement 'bout these rookies. Next came Unholy (1999) and I began to accept Brainstorm as Europe's main answer against the a-la Iced Earth U.S. Metal. More was to come...
One of the (now) leading voices in this country, Andy B. Franck (Symphorce), stepped in and - how weird - the band's level develops FTTSOF (faster than the speed of light) so as to gain a contract with Metal Blade Recordsl. Ambiguity (2000) featured Dirk Schlachter and Sascha Paeth on production, plus overwhelming reviews that created a fabulous feedback, fulfilling the quintet's souls with mega-wishes. It's a pity Metus Mortis (2001) didn't become 'Album Of The Month' in ALL the Metal mags, still Brainstorm finally got the recognition they had worked their asses out for. 2003's Soul Temptation was the fifth full-length album in a 6-year-old career. These hard workers...
Let's cut the crap. Liquid Monster is (nearly) a masterpiece. And there's no exclamation mark needed to enforce this opinion, since from the very first seconds of Worlds Are Comin' Through to the last harmonies of Burns My Soul I can't find a weak moment, an average vocal part, a dull guitar chord. What the hell? And I consider myself to be rather old-school... Start counting: a) Andy B. Frank: the man is great. In the vein of Rob Halford, this guy deserves all the best he can achieve. He has guts, he has passion, he has melodies, he has breath, he has character, b) Torsten Ihlenfeld - Milan Loncaric - Andreas Mailander - Dieter Bernert: to mix the roar of Painkiller, the savage poetry of The Dark Saga and the color of Imaginations From The Other Side is - anyway - a complex mission. What about if you just take a shot from each monumental album, transcript it and pour endless passion for real Heavy Metal music, the way it MUST sound today? Get outta here... c) If only I knew who's behind the producer's seat (Achim Kohler?). How do you say you kicked Metal ass, bro!!! in German? Equally balanced between modern elements and traditional ideas, I just can't stop praising this monstrous release. So simple...
So, then why not a 10/10 rate? someone may wonder? Hmmm... I guess 'cause I already mentioned something. You can get the ultimate if you can - among other achievements - create a new path for others to follow, a new way of thinking. Brainstorm don't do that, yet they show a certain way of...
How Heavy Metal IS in the 21th century. Not Power, not Thrash, not Avante Garde, not Nu, not anything else! Only today's Heavy Metal! . I didn't say that... Still, judging from an ex-brother who awaits for the limited first edition of Liquid Monster (including a bonus DVD gift) to hit the stores.
- Album Highlights: Heavy Metal all the way!