Sea Of Tranquility


The Web Source for Progressive Rock, Progressive Metal & Jazz-Fusion
  Search   in       
Main Menu




Metal Church: A Light In The Dark

Where were you in 1985 when the 1st Metal Church album was thrust upon us Headbangers? In the era of TRUE Heavy Metal was cutting it's teeth! Now, a lot of you weren't even born yet, I know (UGH!!!!) but just after the wave of the NWOBHM (New Wave of British Heavy Metal, for you newbie's!) of the early '80's that brought us Iron Maiden, Saxon, Def Leppard, Samson, Venom, Motorhead, etc. the San Francisco Bay Area, was brewing the mighty Metallica, Slayer and Exodus and the Seattle area, pre Grunge, gave us Metal Church!

I can remember hearing the 2 opening tracks of the self titled Metal Church album, "Beyond The Black" & "Metal Church" and thinking, "phew...this is F@#king Awesome!" And as a side note, these 2 songs should ALWAYS be played together and NEVER separated! Brutal, brutal stuff!!! Now cut to 2006 and only 1 original member of the Church stands in the fold, that being main songwriter/guitarist, Kurdt Vanderhoof. Metal Church has been through a TON of line up changes over the years. And the Metal world lost the original Metal Church singer, David Wayne, in 2005. But Metal Church has been pushing on.

A Light In The Dark is the latest release from Metal Church (SPV USA) which features singer Ronnie Munroe, who is a great cross between the 2 most prominent Metal Church singers, David Wayne and Mike Howe. The Church's '80's style Metal is back hard and heavy, thanx to great riffing from Kurdt Vanderhoof. Jay Reynolds, formally of the great L.A. band Malice, is still in the band, sharing guitar duties with Vanderhoof and they are well in sync.

Opening track, "A Light in the Dark", sets the pace for this Metal era gone by. It is steeped in what made the early '80's Metal so great. Riffs, speed and anger! It stands up to the metal of today, while staying true to their roots. Check out "Temples of the Sea" for a shift into the somber and moody. Metal the way it's supposed to be.

A Light In The Dark is a must for the Metal Church fan. It's not 1985, but this is a very solid CD that will find a home with the "Old School", as well as with new fans ready to join the Congregation. Also included is a cover of their 1986 classic "Watch The Children Prey" from their album The Dark, which is dedicated to David Wayne. A classy gesture. Metal Church stay true to their roots, and who can ask for more than that?


Track Listing
  1. A Light In The Dark
  2. Beyond All Reason
  3. Mirror Of Lies
  4. Disappear
  5. The Believer
  6. Temples Of The Sea
  7. Pill For The Kill
  8. Son Of The Son
  9. More Than Your Master
  10. Blinded By Life
  11. Watch The Children Prey

Added: January 25th 2007
Reviewer: Butch Jones
Score:
Related Link: Metal Church Website
Hits: 3756
Language: english

[ Printer Friendly Page Printer Friendly Page ]
[ Send to a Friend Send to a Friend ]

  

[ Back to the Reviews Index | Post Comment ]

» SoT Staff Roundtable Reviews:

Metal Church: A Light In The Dark
Posted by Ken Pierce, SoT Staff Writer on 2007-01-25 19:05:35
My Score:

Attention head bangers it is time for Church – Metal Church that is, and with "A Light In The Dark" we find the band still going strong and creating solid Metal under the watchful creative direction of Kurdt Vanderhoof (the group's sole original member). Lead singer Ronny Munroe proves his salt with his second outing in the band on powerful numbers like "Mirror Of Lies" and the epic "Temples Of The Sea", a tune that runs just short of ten minutes. Ronny has the required Metal powers when needed but he also shows the ability of just being an impressive Rock singer with a wide range of vocal styles. He was the perfect person to fill the role of singer in this band and I am sure going forward he will establish quite a fan base for himself. Another change in the group is that the new album also features the talents of Jeff Plate on drums. Jeff replaces Kirk Arrington who left due to health complications in 2006, and brings with him the expertise of working with Savatage, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and Chris Caffery. Plate's style is something that long time fans will appreciate as he is no stranger to playing quality Metal. The group is rounded out by Jay Reynolds and Steve Unger who handle the second guitar and bass duties on the recording and have been members of the band since the previous album "Weight Of The World". Regardless of the band being comprised of a completely new lineup they still manage to deliver the goods and are perfect for those listeners who are seeking a Classic Metal sound without it being retro or dated. Metal Church was always a pure entity when it came to the genre and since their formation in 1981 has influenced many bands that followed them.

"ALITD" has a lot of catchy, air-guitar worthy Metal for you to enjoy as well as a very poignant number as which is the re-recording of the classic "Watch The Children Pray". The song is included as a tribute to former lead singer David Wayne who died in May 2005 from complications that followed a car crash. Munroe surely does his predecessor proud and I am sure that from high above Wayne is raising the horns back to him for such a powerful rendition of this number. The release is a great blast of well-thought out Metal that I feel most existing fans and others will appreciate. Metal Church proudly continues to preach the gospel of Metal and isn't it time you listened.



© 2004 Sea Of Tranquility		For information regarding where to send CD promos and advertising, please see our FAQ page.
If you have questions or comments, please Contact Us.
Please see our Policies Page for Site Usage, Privacy, and Copyright Policies.

All logos and trademarks in this site are property of their respective owner. The comments are property of their posters, all other content © Sea of Tranquility

SoT is Hosted by SpeedSoft.com