AT VANCE - Facing Your Enemy CD Review

ARTIST: At Vance
TITLE: Facing Your Enemy
YEAR: 2012
LABEL: AFM Records
REVIEWED BY: Caroline Restiaux

It's been a couple weeks since I have been able to sit down and get back to reviewing the latest and upcoming releases in the world of METAL. I chose to go with an older band that is fairly new to me. AT VANCE is a band name that might not jump out at you, I mean it didn't strike me as anything I should dive into however once I started listening to their upcoming 9th studio release "Facing Your Enemy" I was happy I took that little dip. Germany's neoclassical power metal masters have created an epic voyage for the listener with the very talented guitarist Olaf Lenk, vocalist Rick Altzi and Kamelot's Casey Grill on drums.

From the opening track 'Heaven Is Calling' to the 5th song 'Live & Learn' the band maintains a mid paced tempo as if galloping along the desert on a horse and then slows right down for 'Don't Dream' and 'See Me Crying' tunes. The CD picks back up at 'Sasious' and then swings in to 'Tokyo' (an 80's cover) in which the lyrics might be lacking a bit but thankfully the guitar work is impressive enough to save the song, that and the vocals. When lyrics are sort of child's play it doesn't work for me, I find it to be a bit lazy. The guitar work in 'March of the Dwarf' pleasantly surprised me even though it was just an instrumental piece. The strings picked right back up again in the following tune 'Fame and Fortune'. Oddly enough one of my favorite tracks on the entire album was the acoustic 'Things I Never Needed'. It was a huge change from the other songs but blended and fit well into the mix. It was almost like the calm before the storm only in reverse. I really really liked the song, the arrangement and the lyrics, it was quite refreshing. Maybe an acoustic album in the future for the guys?

With the amount of talent blistering from this team of musicians it's hard to nit pick and say anything negative because it's a masterpiece. Even the artwork is captivating, if you are a fan of Avantasia or Edguy you may recognize the art from Thomas Ewehard. I would suggest looking past the name ( or maybe it was just my damned ignorance) and give the album a spin. If you like Deep Purple and Yngwie Malmsteen I think you just might enjoy this one.

TRACKLISTING:

01. Heaven Is Calling
02. Facing Your Enemy
03. Eyes Of A Stranger
04. Fear No Evil
05. Live & Learn
06. Don't Dream
07. See Me Crying
08. Sasious
09. Tokyo
10. March Of The Dwarf
11. Fame And Fortune
12. Things I Never Needed