Jacob's Dream

Item: Theater Of War
Author: D_Lister

Theater Of War

(2001)

Reviewed by D_Lister

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Music

Label Metal Blade RecordsDead Zine2001

heavy metal melodic metal power metal progressive metal

Power metal fans stand up and be counted! If you are not a power metal fan and are American, WAKE UP! The rest of the world embraces this music so heavily and for good reason. This CD is without a doubt the best Christian progressive/power metal I've ever heard.

'Wait a second...why haven't I heard of these guys?' you are asking. Because they are not in the Christian market. They are signed to Metal Blade Records and have nearly complete general market exposure. The songs themselves fully promote this band as a Christian act and if that's not enough I was able to find an interview with them online which the following is a quote from:

"Our songs reflect our beliefs. Some of those are about violence on the streets of America, some are about integrity, some are about the results of drinking and driving. We want to portray a positive message with our music and hopefully show that there is always hope no matter how dark things look. Are we Christians? Yes. However, I personally would never try to cram my spiritual beliefs down somebody's throat. In fact, I'd fight for their right to believe whatever they want, whether it agrees with me or not. That's what premise this country was founded on: Freedom. But we're also allowed to express our beliefs as much as any death-metal bands."

Not every song on this CD is specifically a Christian song. One song deals with the circumstances and consequences of drinking and driving, one about the atrocities of war in general, others have moral issues they deal with. Not one song however is negative and when you can find lyrics like the following you know God will use this medium to spread the knowledge of His son:

"A sacrificial lamb
His precious life he gave.
I saw the blood stream down the hill they call the skull
I heard, 'It is finished.' as the rain began to fall."

Now to the music. These guys are from Ohio and it's good to not only see metal of this quality but to know that an American band can perform this material at a level that is right up there with the secular world. This is a CD you'd gladly play for your friends who listen to Hammerfall, Edguy, or Stratovarius. The packaging and everything is right on par with the secular world. These guys play with precision, technicality and intensity. The guitars are amazing. They shred and cover so many angles it's not funny. Power leads, thick crunching rhythms, and more. The vocals are high, superbly executed and remind me of Sacred Warrior back in the early days. Although the drumming is technical and amazing as well it's not as fast as some bands out there. I did keep listening expecting it to pick up, never the less despite this the album still gets its 10 rating and has secured its place in my list of all time favorite CDs.

Highlight tracks on this disc are Theater of War, The Warning and the dirge Sarah Williams.

If you listen to any Christian prog/power metal like Narnia, Impellitteri, Veni Domine, Antithesis, America Gomorrah, Lightmare, Seventh Avenue, or Balance of Power do yourself a huge favor and at least visit this band's website and check out the sound files. I guarantee you before too long you'll own this disc.

10/10