POWER GAME “Slaying Gods”
By Dr. Abner Mality
Somebody in POWER GAME must be a fan of the great “Lucha Underground show”, as the cover art shows an evil luchador breaking a minotaur’s arm the same way that Pentagon Jr. used to do it on LU. Cero miedo!
I’m happy to say, the record matches the art, as these Germans rip right along with a sort of speed metal/power metal hybrid, with influences from GAMMA RAY, JUDAS PRIEST and even a vibe like the great American power metal band LIEGE LORD! The playing and production is top notch...only the vocals of Matthias Weiner need a little work. They’re not terrible by any means but don’t match the best of the genre. From front to back, “Slaying Gods” is superior speed/power metal.
The title track starts with an avalanche of dueling twin guitar arpeggios before easing into a riff that combines the best of German and American power metal. “Twisted Minds” has a very strong PRIEST influence and some of the most scorching axe work of the album. The following three songs are all fast and melodic, before things slow down for the almost doom-paced “The End of the World”. The more dragging tones don’t work as well for POWER GAME, their forte is blazing speed, heard nowhere better than “Midnite Steel”, which is heads down all the way! The album ends with the 10 minute plus “The Chalice” and thankfully, POWER GAME don’t crumble under the extra length...this one has got some BLIND GUARDIAN soaring vocal lines and more dive bombing guitar duels.
This is one of the better Pure Steel offerings out there and I think we might be hearing more from POWER GAME!