Various Artists
Brave New Music
Reviewed by Doug Van Pelt
This 10-song sampler really only has three songs of much interest to metalheads: Legacy's powerful Whiteheart-ish hard rocker "What A World"; Screamin' Eden's very mellow ballad "Till The End"; and Paradox's "We Are The Temple". The Paradox tune is the only real metal on the album, but it is a disappointing re-working of a great song. It sounds pretty good, but those used to the original from the custom "Ruler" tape will be depressed at what producer Steve Griffith did to their song. One noticeable missing part is the line "Satan will tremble/ when Jesus Christ is seen in me" from the choruses. Fernando Hernandez's wailing dive-bomb leads still find their way onto tape here though. The pre-chorus was lightened up with a little major chord. Not a bad above-ground debut for the band, but those of us who voted them "Favorite unsigned band of the 1980's" expected much more. Some of the non-metal cuts on the album, like Painted Orange's "Hands" and "Broken World" by The Trust, are very good. The diversity of styles is very wide, from Adult Contemporary to Metal, which tries to please a lot of people but may end up annoying the masses. It's a good idea, though, to include a ballot for listeners to send in their votes for favorite song on the album.