By John Bedard
In the interest of full disclosure, I should probably let you know I am a big fan of Metalite. They are one of the few bands I request first dibs to review. This is probably my favorite style of power metal. Especially the whole technology theme. Sure, it is kinda cheesy, but it is a lot of fun! Needless to say, I was very excited to see this land in my inbox. The real question is does it live up to the hype or have I set my expectations too high?
Musically everything is exactly what you would expect and want. Aggressive guitars and drums with a lot of synths. There is definitely a techno influence mixed into what is already a very fast upbeat power metal style making every track have this exciting and optimistic feeling to it. That is probably one of my favorite traits of power metal is that it is feel-good music. None of that is lost here. You cant be in a bad mood listening to this. There is an epic power to every track that makes you feel like you can take on the world. For this moment you are untouchable.
With the vocals, I feel like Erica Ohlsson reached out more on this one. Showing off a lot more of her capability than she did in ‘Biomechanicals’. While I do still miss Emma at times, I can see why the band brought Erica on and I think it was the right call for sure. She is an incredible singer and is a wonderful complement to the band and that fact is shown off here wonderfully. My one complaint is that ‘A Virtual World’ does seem a little more repetitive than ‘Biomechanicals’ or ‘Heroes In Time’. Enough that it did bug me a little but then again that does make the songs easier to learn and sing along with. Much to the dismay of everyone at Walmart, I found myself humming ‘Cloud Connected’ to myself the whole time I was shopping after only having to hear it once. Every track is memorable and will stick in your head as a good track should.
‘A Virtual World’ is another fantastic entry from Metalite and another must-have. So far the band has yet to disappoint me. Every track is consistent quality. If you have never heard Metalite before this is a great entry point for you to get into them and if you are already a fan like me then this one will not let you down. There is a good reason they are one of my favorite bands in the genre and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
- ‘A Virtual World’ is released on 26 March. You can get your copy HERE.
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