ALPHA TIGER — iDentity (review)

ALPHA TIGER — iDentity album cover Album · 2015 · Power Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Time Signature
Shut up and think...

Genre: US-oriented power metal

Sifting through one cheesy European power metal band after the other, I finally found a release by a European power metal band - more specifically the German outfit Alpha Tiger - to look forward to. And, mind you, I'm European myself, so I can hate on that shit all I want.

Anyway, Alpha Tiger's 2015-album "iDentity" drops right into the basked of power metal that I like - that is, non-cheesy US power metal with elements of traditional metal. The relatively upbeat track, 'Lady Liberty' sets things straight from the get go, while 'Scripted Reality' is heavier but no less melodic. 'Long Way of Redemption' explores the transition zone between traditional metal and hard rock and is catchy as hell. The title track along with 'We Won't Take It Anymore' and 'This World Will Burn', while more metallic, are equally melodic, and there are bursts of Queensrÿche-inspired progressive metal in 'Revolution in Progress'. 'Closer than Yesterday' is a pretty decent power ballad

Come to think of it, the reason I like this power metal album is perhaps that there's not a lot of power metal to it after all, even though the band is widely accepted as a power metal act. The most power metal-oriented track is probably 'Shut Up & Think', which is actually a pretty good song with lots of dynamic and an attractive use of guitar harmonies. Actually, there is more traditional metal on this album than power metal. And the power metal elements to be heard are, as mentioned, more oriented towards US power metal. Ah, well, that explains that.

The musicianship and songwriting skills documented on this album are very solid, and in particular Stephan Dietrich's vocals which are akin to a young Geoff Tate and at times perform complex melodies not unlike John Arch or Tom Mallicoat (without maintaining the level of complexity that those two singers are known for). The production is kind of retro without being lo-fi, and that suits the music pretty well.

'iDentity' is a very strong album, which should appeal to fans of early Queensrÿche, Lethal, Iron Maiden, and Vicious Rumors.
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