THE FERRYMEN is an all-star band featuring Magnus Karlsson (from PRIMAL FEAR, ALLEN/LANDE, FREE FALL), Ronnie Romero (from LORDS OF BLACK, RAINBOW) and Mike Terrana (from RAGE, MASTERPLAN).  Even if you don't know who any of these names or bands are, you should still be excited because this album is a metal heads wet dream.  Everything is so slick and well done that I can't find anything wrong with this release at all other than the fact it eventually ends. With so many big names attached to this, it would be easy to assume this release would be bloated and full of try hard playing but nothing could be further from the truth.

No offense to the other two guys (both of whom do an amazing job), Romero's vocals steal the show here. He truly sounds like a mix between Jorn, Dio, and Russel Allen.  With that kind of vocal power behind him, he delivers a consistent, expressive, perfectly pitched tone with just the right amount of roughness.  Karlsson has displayed his rifftastic abilities for years and he continues to bring his A game.  Does this guy ever run out of ideas?  He is truly a gifted song writer and this one more masterpiece on his belt.  After a somewhat soothing and short into that is built into the song, the album opens with "The End of the Road."  It has a fantastic, hard hitting riff and Romero's vocals soar over it-these two are one hell of a team.  Terrana's drums are very beefy...his legs really pound the double bass and his skin work is super tight and plentiful.  There are some light keyboards on this song and they add just a touch of playful magic to the overall sound, definitely more of an enhancement than standard epic filler a lot of bands do.  The keys pop up throughout the album and definitely give it an extra layer of atmosphere but its complimentary to the sound, not pompous.

The album is pretty consistent throughout with the middle of the album managing to stay pretty strong.  "Darkest Hour" has an old school metal feel to it, the guitar very energetic and galloping.  Even more so than usual, the vocals echo DIO.  The song is extremely catchy, heavy, and has just the right amount of melody during the chorus.   The guitar solos are melodic yet complicated enough to keep you engaged and guessing. "How The Story Ends," is very bass heavy and that gives the song a very strong foundation to work with.  The middle of the song is very strong, a great solo, riff, and vocal bridge really make it a contender for one of the best songs on an album that's full of them. "One Heart" and "Eternal Night" are the albums two ballads but they still throw in crunchy metal riffs, soaring solos, and, of course, amazing vocal prowess.

THE FERRYMEN have crafted an amazing hard rock/prog metal record with old school sensibilities wrapped up in a modern sound.  Early contender for top 10 albums of the year and highly recommended for anyone who are fans of the individual members' other bands or more classic metal.