UMUR
"Hell Destroyer" is the 4th full-length studio album by US, California based power/heavy metal act Cage. The album was released through Destroy All Records in May 2007. It´s the successor to "Darker Than Black" from 2003 and features the same five-piece lineup who recorded the predecessor.
And it´s a confident and very well playing band performing on "Hell Destroyer". High level musicianship on all posts. Sharp traditional heavy metal/US power metal riffs and rhythms, blistering solos, and lead vocalist Sean Peck´s strong and passionate vocals in front. Peck is an incredibly intense and convincing singer with a commanding delivery and while all involved play a great role in the high level delivery of the music, Peck stands out as something special. The music is generally pretty hard-edged and aggressive for the genre, and a comparison to the most raw and fast-paced tracks by Judas Priest (think "Painkiller") is valid. As such it´s just a natural succession of the music style on "Darker Than Black (2003)".
"Hell Destroyer" is a concept album and the main theme of the story is the fight between Christ and the Devil. It´s put into a fantasy story with epic battles and other classic fantasy elements, but there is a Christian message here that Cage obviously want to deliver. It´s one of the most badass Christian themed heavy metal albums I´ve yet encountered though, so if you have an aversion to Christian lyrics, it´s maybe time to either broaden your horizon or just look past the lyrics and enjoy the many other high quality features "Hell Destroyer" has to offer.
You can add to that list a powerful, sharp, and very well sounding production, and "Hell Destroyer" is simply a high quality heavy metal release through and through. The only minor issue I have with the album is the fact that it´s over 70 minutes long. While every track on the album individually is strong and memorable, 70 minutes still feels a little long for an album featuring this type of music. As you can hear complaining about quantity really is a minor issue, and I overall find "Hell Destroyer" highly recommendable to fans of US power/heavy metal. A 4 star (80%) rating is fully deserved.