WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?
As the political system in Ukraine is still a bit under pressure *cough* damn you Russia *cough*, there is a new melodic/heavy/ power metal band that sprouted, yes, I am talking about DEFIANT. Since its formation in 2008 DEFIANT has enthralled their fans as a band as their music is both musically powerful as it is equally melodic.
The band has previously released three EP's and during 2012 a full-length debut album named "Masquerade" which laid the groundwork for their newest "Time isn't healing" record.

I recently read an interview with them, and when asked what bands have influenced them and their style, their answers was STRATOVARIUS, KAMELOT, HALLOWEEN, SYMPHONY X, to name a few, and that's exactly what you are listening to with "Time isn't healing" but with a more melodic twist. The album starts with a symphonic stormy intro (duh) and continues with "Milestones of time" which is the fastest of the album and one of the catchiest songs I have had the pleasure of listening to lately. Vocalist Stanislav Proshkin does an amazing job; he has some roughness to his voice but always sings clean. For some reason, it makes me envision him as a pirate (give that man some rum, matey). To make another compliment to Stanislav, on some parts, he sounds a lot like Dave Mustaine especially on "The Jericho".

The foundation of their power metal is definitely classic heavy metal, and the keyboard presence that goes from light to a large orchestration gives DEFIANT an aura of intrigue. I fell in love with "Don't trust the words" from the first second I heard the soft keyboard merging with the aggressive riffs; it has a strong melody to it. "Soul is burning" has a superb tempo, 10+ for execution, foot stomping heavy with a lot of personality. Some might say that "Time isn't healing" is a standard power-metal album, nothing outside the box, to whom I say, so what? I, for one, am a sucker for some good old power, fast pounding drums and intense keyboard playing, I cant recommend them more.
DEFIANT is definitely a band to keep an eye on in the future; I know I will.