EDGE OF ATTACK — Edge of Attack

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EDGE OF ATTACK - Edge of Attack cover
3.98 | 5 ratings | 2 reviews
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Album · 2013

Tracklist

1. In Hell (4:36)
2. The Haunting (5:08)
3. Demon (Of The Northern Seas) (5:04)
4. Take Me Alive (4:24)
5. In The Night (4:27)
6. Edge Of Attack (5:07)
7. Rise Above (5:55)
8. Forever (3:46)
9. The Damned (6:01)
10. Set The World Aflame (8:29)

Total time 52:57

Line-up/Musicians

- Roxanne Gordey / Vocals
- Jurekk Whipple / Guitars, Vocals
- Dallas Dyck / Guitars
- Denver Whipple / Bass
- Trevor Swain / Drums

with

- Ivan Giannini / Vocals (on #3)
- Ryan Bovaird / Vocals (on #9)
- PelleK / Vocals (on #10)

About this release

Release Date – Feb 19, 2013
Label – Spread the Metal Records
Distribution – 24 Hour

Thanks to Time Signature for the addition and adg211288 for the updates

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adg211288
Edge of Attack is the debut full-length album by Canadian power metal act Edge of Attack. The album features three guest vocals appearances from Ivan Giannini (Derdian), Ryan Bovaird (Hallows Die) and Pellek (Damnation Angels) and was released in 2013.

The music on Edge of Attack is a mix of traditional heavy metal and power metal, with an occasional foray into thrash metal territory. The band seems to promote themselves as power-thrash but this is only really true for a minority portion of the music, most of the stuff here is heavy/power metal. In truth though their power-thrash material is the strongest on the album, so hopefully on future releases we’ll get to hear them going down this path and leaving the traditional metal elements behind. It’s quite a modern sound featuring a lead female vocalist with some additional vocals growled, and pretty much free of the so called cheese usually found in power metal acts, with perhaps the exception of the song Set the World Aflame, which is the one featuring Pellek, who takes over lead vocals from Edge of Attack’s Roxanne Gordey here. I’m not sure I approve of that move but ironically it’s the strongest song here in terms of composition.

The musicianship is superb, especially that of lead guitarist Jurekk Whipple. His solo work is one of the biggest highlights in the release. There are of course also some riffs of note but they generally don’t make as much of a lasting impression as Whipple’s leads. This is a very good backbone to build the rest of the album off of, but unfortunately the vocal department of Edge of Attack is a bit lacking, and drags my regard for a good number of the songs down a notch. Lead vocalist Roxanne Gordey is fine, if a bit unusual for the genre, being more of what you might expect from a singer in a rock band rather than a metal band, but hey, her voice works, surprisingly well in fact. The growls are the problem here, right from the opening In Hell showing how growls, when used the wrong way in genres that don’t by default use them, can ultimately harm the impact of a track. Fortunately the growls aren’t used as much within Edge of Attack so it’s important not to use the terms ‘harm’ and ‘ruin’ interchangeably, but at the same time I’m sure my regard for the album would have been kicked up a notch if Gordey was given free rein to do her thing.

A solid debut release from Edge of Attack, but a couple of simple changes to the way they perform their music would easily see them became a much stronger act. They should drop the growling, or at least get better at it because really it’s not the fact that growls are here at all that makes them not work, it’s because they’re just not that good. Scratch that, they should just drop them, because in Roxanne Gordey they’ve got a lead vocalist who is a bit different and they should be making the most of her voice. She doesn’t need, and more importantly their songs don’t need the growling. Also I’d like to hear more thrash elements. Power metal and thrash metal work better together than I think some give them credit for, and power-thrash tracks like In Hell and the title track have shown themselves to be among the best on the album. A great album tier rating is deserved, but by rights this album should easily have gone one better.

79/100

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven: http://metaltube.freeforums.org/edge-of-attack-edge-of-attack-t2970.html))
Time Signature
In hell...

Genre: power metal

Sometimes, I get the feeling that people are under the impression that I do not like power metal per se. That's a grave misunderstanding. I only dislike power metal which is too cheesy and too generic.

I actually love power metal which emphasizes the METAL and which is not too cheesy. A bit of cheese is okay - it's part of the genre - but when it gets too much, then it stops appealing to me.

Well, the Canadian act Edge of Attack manage to find that fine balance between the metal and the cheese, thankfully tilting more towards the metal side, but retaining the amount of cheese that makes power metal charming. Thus, their debut album is characterized by the big and catchy choruses and the epicness that define the power metal genre, and there are also a couple of neoclassicisms every now and then. So, power metal fans should absolutely adore this album.

However, the typical power metal features are accompanied by aggressive and crunchy guitar riffs, many of which have a thrashy feel to them. In addition, Edge of Attack also draw on traditional metal both in terms of riffage and chord progressions, and there are also several instances of twin lead guitars. So, yes, there is definitely emphasis on the metal on this album.

Roxanne Gordey takes care of the vocal duties, but her singing style has a more rock quality than many other female vocalists in power metal bands, and I really appreciate this. Her voice has a sense of clarity and, although she does not really do any vocal acrobatics, her singing really fits the music perfectly. The rhythm section is rock solid, and Jurekk Whipple's lead guitars are no less than virtuosic.

Edge of Attack's eponymous debut definitely belongs to the category of power metal albums that I really enjoy. It's got the metal riffage and crunch, at times even venturing into melodeath territory. At the same time, it features the big and catchy choruses and the energy that define the power metal genre. Metalheads who prefer their power metal aggressive and crushing and at the same time appreciate the melody and larger-than-life nature of power metal are likely to really enjoy this album.

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