David Shankle, former Manowar guitar wizard has returned with a group under his own name. Their debut effort entitled Ashes to Ashes is a great piece indeed. As a fan of Manowar I can honestly tell you that while this band holds some similar themes it is by no means a clone of Manowar music. The DSG has more in common with that of Iron Maiden or Queensryche for that matter. I felt this is good since it allows the band its own identity seperate from that of Manowar. In my humble opinion it allowed Dave's work in Manowar to remain special and his new DSG material has a chance to rise to success on it's own.
Songs of note or at least my favorites are as follows: "Ashes To Ashes", "Curse Of The Pharoah", "Calling All Heroes", "Tolling Of The Bell" and "Madness". There is also a killer instrumental called "Voice Of Authority". David leads the group on guitar while he is joined by Trace Edward Zaber (vocals), Eddy "Shreddy" Bethishou (keyboards), Brian Gordon (Bass), and Eddie Foltz (Drums). The group holds their own and is quite talented, Dave did good in picking them out.
Some cool little addition is the fact that the videos for "Ashes To Ashes" and "Calling All Heroes" are included on this CD. A nice inclusion which makes purchasing it all that better. I rated this CD on the high side because I found almost every number catchy and energetic. It is very easy to find oneself playing this CD a few times after purchase.
Track Listing
1. Ashes To Ashes
2. A Raven At Midnight
3. The Windows Grief
4. The Widow's Peak
5. Calling All Heroes
6. Curse Of The Pharoah
7. The Tolling Of The Bell
8. Secrets
9. Madness
10. Back To Heaven
11. Masquerade
12. The Magic Of The Chords
13. Voice Of Authority
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