MASTERCASTLE

Power Metal / Heavy Metal • Italy

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Mastercastle were founded in January 2008 by the guitar player Pier Gonella and the singer Giorgia Gueglio. The pair had several music projects in the past and wanted to try something different. No fixed genre was chosen with the emphasis being on producing music in a natural way.

The result was a natural mix of the virtuoso guitar style of Pier with the individual female voice of Giorgia Gueglio which worked well together. The pair wrote a great number of songs and recorded a 4 songs promo to gain label interest. The line-up was completed by the drummer Alessandro Bissa aka Bix and the bassist Steve Vawamas, and the name Mastercastle was settled on for the new real band.

On July 2008 they sent the demo to Lion Music who offered a deal which leads us up to the release of Mastercastle’s debut album “The Phoenix” on April 17th 2009. The album read more...

Thanks to Stooge for the addition and DippoMagoo for the updates

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MASTERCASTLE Discography

MASTERCASTLE albums / top albums

5.00 | 1 ratings

The Phoenix
Power Metal 2009

5.00 | 1 ratings

Last Desire
Power Metal 2010

MASTERCASTLE Dangerous Diamonds album cover

3.62 | 4 ratings

Dangerous Diamonds
Power Metal 2011

3.36 | 3 ratings

On Fire
Power Metal 2013

MASTERCASTLE Enfer [De La Bibliothèque Nationale] album cover

4.00 | 3 ratings

Enfer [De La Bibliothèque Nationale]
Power Metal 2014

3.50 | 3 ratings

Wine of Heaven
Heavy Metal 2017

MASTERCASTLE Lighthouse Pathetic album cover

5.00 | 1 ratings

Lighthouse Pathetic
Heavy Metal 2022

MASTERCASTLE EPs & splits

MASTERCASTLE live albums

MASTERCASTLE demos, promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs)

MASTERCASTLE re-issues & compilations

MASTERCASTLE singles (0)

MASTERCASTLE movies (DVD, Blu-Ray or VHS)

MASTERCASTLE Reviews

MASTERCASTLE On Fire

Album · 2013 · Power Metal

Time Signature

Silver eyes...

Genre: traditional metal

Masterclastle's 2011-album "Dangerous Diamonds" was pretty good, offering up tasty heavy metal with elements of power metal and compellingly powerful vocals by Giorgia Gueglio.

So, can they follow up on the artistic success that was "Dangerous Diamonds"?

Well, not quite, I think. "On Fire" strikes me as being a bit lackluster. The musicianship is still there, and there is still plenty of guitar action and blazingly acrobatic guitar solos and neoclassicisms, and Giorgia still shows that she is a very suited front-woman for the melodically oriented metal that the band represents (she also designed the nice cover artwork, by the way).

But, compared to its predecessor, this album just seems too laidback for my taste (both in the instrumental demartment and in terms of the vocals).

We are still dealing with solid and enjoyable melodic metal, and I would not go as far as saying that the album is not a good one. It has a lot of qualities, such as memorable chorus lines, and the highly enjoyable 'Silver Eyes', 'Quicksilver', 'The Final Battle', and 'Titanium Wings' do have the energy that has made previous Mastercastle releases so enjoyable.

On the whole, "On Fire" is an enjoyable metal album with plenty of highlights and good moments, and fans of melodic metal in particular are likely to enjoy it.

more than 2 years ago
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Report #283037

MASTERCASTLE Dangerous Diamonds

Album · 2011 · Power Metal

Time Signature

Time 4 (metal) lovers...

Genre: power-oriented heavy metal

Mastercastle is an Italian power metal-oriented band, and this fact might make some people cringe at the prospect of load upon loaf of cheese. Well, fear not, because Mastercastle's "Dangerous Diamonds" is happily free of cheesiness, as the main focus is on strong guitar riffs and powerful vocals.

Stylistically, Mastercastle draw both on power metal and on more traditional heavy metal as well as more melodic metal/hard rock, which means that you can expect the big and catchy chorus-lines that are so characteristic of power metal, but Mastecastle generally operate with slower tempos than typical Euro-power metal and pretty much avoid the uptempo double bass drum patterns of Euro-power metal, instead drawing on classic metal riffs, groovy riffs, and melodic hard rock riffs, and this actually works incredibly well in generating a melodic, broadly appealing, yet hard rocking, album.

Vocalist Giorgia Gueglio has a very clear and clean voice, but her singing is also very powerful and she can really belt out some catchy vocal lines, and she is just the type of female vocalist that I appreciate in metal music. In general, the musicianship is very high, and not only are the riffs strong and hard rocking, the guitar solos are blazing and very technical and impressive – and very enjoyable to listen to.

Dangerous Diamonds is a very well put together melodic metal album which should appeal to fans of melodic hard rock, classic metal and power metal alike... oh, and fans of awesome guitar playing.

(review originally posted at seaoftranquility.org)

more than 2 years ago
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Report #259512

MASTERCASTLE Dangerous Diamonds

Album · 2011 · Power Metal

J-Man

Mastercastle is a female-fronted Italian power metal act, and Dangerous Diamonds is their third full-length studio album. Though most folks would be inclined to think of music on the more symphonic and bombastic side when we're talking about power metal from Italy, Mastercastle instead sports a sound that relies much more on traditional heavy metal and melodic hard rock than your average European power metal outfit. The vocals from Giorgia Gueglio are also much more powerful than you may expect, and her impressive pipes are always used as an integral part of the music rather than a dominant force that distracts from the rest of the instrumentation. Though these two likely misconceptions about Mastercastle are false, Dangerous Diamonds is a still a fairly bland release that lacks a unique identity of its own. There is plenty of excellent guitar playing and solid riffs to grab the attention of most melodic heavy metal fans, but Mastercastle will need to offer a little bit more until I'm truly impressed.

The first thing that will probably grab the attention of most listeners is the spectacular fretwork of Pier Gonella - he's a truly gifted guitarist, and in addition to plenty of meaty riffs and blinding leads, he also has enough melodic sensibilities in his playing to set him apart from your average shred guitarist. The rest of the musicians are equally skilled, and if you're looking for solid musicianship on a melodic heavy metal album, Dangerous Diamonds is definitely a good place to turn. Unfortunately, I'm not quite as impressed by the compositions as I am by the delivery, and the majority of Dangerous Diamonds strikes me as "melodic heavy metal-by-numbers" more than anything else. Though there are plenty of solid riffs and great solos, Mastercastle makes little effort to really stand out from the crowd. Dangerous Diamonds delivers plenty of goods, but it sounds too unadventurous and "safe" to really grab my attention.

With that said, Mastercastle still dishes out enough melodic hooks, memorable choruses, and excellent guitar solos to satisfy most fans of melodic heavy metal. Though Dangerous Diamonds lacks enough memorability to leave a truly lasting impression on the listener, it's a highly professional release from nearly every aspect. I'd say 3 stars are deserved in this case. Mastercastle will need to develop a more unique sound if they want to stand out in the crowded melodic metal market, but for what it is, Dangerous Diamonds is a competent slice of modern metal.