Sometimes it's only getting better along the way. Talking about bad luck InnerWish had their share of bad luck along the years. With a line up shaky like the ground of Tokyo, with accidents happening to band members, cancellations of shows and festivals they were part of the line up (latest example: X-Fest here in Athens) fate finally paid back with a contract with one of the most known companies in Europe - LIMB. The first fruit of this collaboration was the excellent Silent Faces back in 2003.
So what's Inner Strength is all about? Classic melodic power metal with fantastic vocals and ass kicking guitar work. Like fine wine InnerWish just getting better along the way. Their compositions have become solid like a rock, the refrains are catchy like hell while as I already mentioned the guitar work is one of the finest I have heard for a long time in a power metal release. Where all their colleagues around the world mess things up by adding tons of keyboards, or by having a screamer as a vocalist or by simply playing as fast as they can (like they are in a hurry or something) Innerwish just say NO to all of this and manage to capture the interest of the listener with their down to earth ideology about composing music.
Yes there are keyboards in here, but mostly used as carpets and in general their use can be described as discreet. Yes there are fast compositions but not all of them for heaven's sake. And yes their vocalist can raise his voice high enough but he never makes your dog howling pissed off! Everything in here have a golden balance and I guess that's one of the hardest things to achieve inside an album.
Some of the coolest songs in here are the kick-start Travellers In Time with its ethereal refrain. This is one killer track with fast pace time signatures. The more modern Eye Of The Storm and Final Prophecy offer a new look in the band's personality. Huge thumbs up for the excellent cover version of Lonely Lady (originally performed by Q5) that simply smashes everything in its path. The production by R.D. Liapakis (Mystic Prophecy) is a guarantee of quality (his studio is becoming more and more popular to power metal bands lately).
In conclusion Inner Strength can be easily considered one of the best power metal releases of 2006. Too bad not too many bands like this one exist in Greece...