Here we have another Finnish Metal band. That's very good because during the last four years many good bands have been popping out from Finland all the time and they've been playing some great music too. Requiem is a new band and Mask Of Damnation is their second album. But let me introduce them to you.
The history of Requiem goes back to the year 1999. Requiem was founded in Haapajärvi, Finland. The band started first as a trio and in the beginning their music was melodic Death/Power Metal with neo-classical vibrations. In the beginning of 2000 they changed their style clearly to Melodic Power Metal. So they took all the members that they needed for a band of that style, thus a second guitarist, a keyboard player and a singer with a clear voice.
The band has followed the path of the other Melodic Power Metal bands that come from Finland. So, in Mask Of Damnation we can hear good Power Metal compositions standing on a good Heavy basis, played by the guitars, the bass and the drums. We can hear neoclassical solos, atmospheric keyboards, really good and fast drums. The songs are good, full of emotion and have a little melancholic atmosphere made by the keyboards.
Jouni Nikula is a pretty good singer and he has a very good voice. He can sing pretty much anything he wants to with that voice. He can sing in high frequencies as good as he sings in the lower ones and thus he contributes to the creation of this melancholic atmosphere that appears in all the songs.
Mask Of Damnation is a good album and I think that if they work harder they will definitely write even better music. I hope that we will hear more news from them really soon.
- Album Highlights: Blinded, Ethereal Journey and The Rival's Spell.