Ninth Circle - Legions Of The Brave (2014)

Genre: Heavy
Subgenre: Heavy / Power Metal
Bitrate: 320 k
Size: 157.05 MB

Ninth Circle - Legions Of The Brave (2014)

Frank Forray Bass (1996-present)
Dennis Brown Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards (1996-present)
Dave Davis Drums (2008-present)
Andy J. Guitars (2013-present)

Ninth Circle has been electrifying audiences in the US with their stunning live performances over the last several years. Their brand of Melodic Metal has served them well since the release of the self-titled debut in 2000.

Branded as "in your face melodic metal from Southern California's premier powerhouse trio", the album Ninth Circle quickly ran up the Independent Metal Charts and reached the #1 position on MP3.com. Keeping with the tradition of bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, Ninth Circle remains a band true to their roots to this day.

Ninth Circle continued to support their release by performing live even when heavy metal remained unfashionable. They carried the metal flag deep into battle with every show, gaining new fans each time. The song writing partnership of Dennis Brown (Vocals & Guitar) and Frank Forray (Bass Guitar) would not be compromised; heavy metal was in their blood and heavy melodic metal is what they delivered!

In the winter of 2008 Ninth Circle emerged stronger than ever with their worldwide critically acclaimed The Power of One. The album showcased the influences of bands such as Hammerfall, Primal Fear and Stratovarius, giving the band a more progressive and aggressive sound.

The Metal community quickly accepted the album and the band received 7 nominations at the “South Bay Music Awards” in Southern California including album of the year. More and more positive reviews surfaced worldwide and Ninth Circle again quickly ran up to the top of the Metal Charts this time on cdbaby.com.

Ninth Circle riding the wave of success from The Power Of One have now created a Melodic Metal masterpiece; Legions Of The Brave. The band has gone bigger and bolder by embracing progressive elements and pushing Metal into new melodic realms. Ninth Circle delivers an exciting brand of metal combining dynamic song writing, powerful riffs and a driving rhythm section. Legions of the Brave hooks the listener in from the very first track.

Legions of the Brave is the outcome of 3 years of touring; inspiration from bands they performed with such as Primal Fear, Hammerfall, Y&T, Mr. Big, Dokken, UFO and Michael Schenker, and a year of focused songwriting. Legions of the Brave elevates Ninth Circle into the hierarchy of melodic metal with their lethal combination of melody and power.



Quote:
A great modern USPM release - 90%

imcominforyou, June 24th, 2014

The current trend of power metal bands converting to a hard rock sound has been a major gripe for me. Too many groups seem to fancy foregoing their speedy and melodic sound in favor of a more subdued and less serious approach to their music and lyrics. My gripe with this isn’t the shift in sound, necessarily, but the inept mediocrity that gets released as a result.

Ninth Circle’s third album, Legions of the Brave, is an anomaly in that regard; it beautifully molds a sound that incorporates symphonic, progressive, power, and neoclassical elements, along with a hard rock flair, for a cohesive sound that is well-rounded and engaging, but not a novelty.

The sound on here jumps to-and-from many different styles, but the constants are what lend the most validity to Ninth Circle. First and foremost, the heavy inclusion of Hammond organs is always a treat, especially alongside the frequent orchestral hits. Hell, they even cover Deep Purple’s “Stormbringer”, much to my happiness.

Together, these two elements really help provide an additional dimension to the already-solid songwriting. Without the organs or orchestral hits, this would just be a decent melodic metal album; but with those traits, the band’s sound takes on its own personality. I can wholeheartedly say that Ninth Circle’s music has its own personality, something that is horribly lacking in every metal genre.

Second of all, Dennis Brown’s sublime vocal delivery is a massive highlight of the album. From the infectious earworms of “Living on the Sun” to the fervency of the chorus of “All or Nothing”, his singing remains one of the band’s most notable inclusions.

He’s not a Kiske dead ringer, nor is he a Kotipelto copycat, but instead his voice is extremely unique to the point that I don’t think I can accurately juxtapose it with anyone else’s except maybe stretching to compare it to Silvio Massaro of Vanishing Point. In fact, Vanishing Point and Ninth Circle seem to border each other in terms of their stylistic elements. And I love Vanishing Point.

One thing that I must commend Ninth Circle for is not shoehorning in any unnecessary and unwanted ballads onto Legions of the Brave. Their songs may run the spectrum from “All or Nothing” and its neoclassical riffing to the title track’s NWOBHM melodies and harmonies to the speed metal contained on “Grinding the Bastards Down”, but never are we subject to a questionable ballad.

Even though “Going Home” and its slower pace and lyrical content may lend itself to a ballad, the song most dominantly runs along a melodic rock sound. Instead, the progressive elements prove to be Ninth Circle’s secret weapon; “Living on the Sun” recalls Operation: Mindcrime, “After the Rain” is reminiscent of Iron Maiden’s new progressive ventures, and the two-part “Arcturus Rising” is basically what Dream Theater wishes they could write these days.

Legions of the Brave and its incredibly catching, yet also engaging and varied, song structures and genre-bending are what make it such an enjoyable album from beginning to end. They’ve achieved in forging their own unique sound, and that is a major feat in today’s music landscape.

Ultimately, their strong emphasis on their assets helps them tremendously, with my only minor complaint being the occasional forgettable verse. Ninth Circle have a fantastic album on their hands that any fans of Seventh Wonder, Vanishing Point, or Human Fortress would be delighted to listen to.