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SABER “Lost in Flames”
SABER “Lost in Flames”
By Colonel Angus
SABER is back after releasing “Without Warning” approximately four years ago. After a couple of years of touring, they decided to release this sophomore effort and it is just more of the same great material that was on the debut. If you heard their first record then you know exactly what to expect but for new listeners, this is a group from southern California that embraces all of the best elements of traditional metal. You get infectious riffing, wailing vocals, and a thunderous rhythm section. Each piece of this metal puzzle fits perfectly and like another newer band called INTRANCED, these guys fall firmly into that NWOTHM genre.
The title track starts things off with an epic intro section before they launch into the main song which is a riff heavy rocker that would work perfectly as an opener for their concerts. Joel Dominguez and Antonion Pettinato provide some great guitar work that elevates the track beyond mundane heavy metal. Speeding things up, “Phoenix Rising” has that frantic energy of early SAXON but with some banshee wails provided by vocalist Steven Villa. Even though this track is less than three minutes long, they manage to include this really cool pre-solo bridge that has this dreamy feel that gives the listener a reprieve from headbanging all the way through.
“Madam Dangerous” slows things down a bit but still sticking with the melodic riffing that is present all over the previous tracks. Clocking in at just over three minutes, SABER come in and get the job done and leave. There are no frills or unnecessary extras thrown to make the song longer. One of the longer tunes on the record is also my personal favorite and I feel that most listeners will find “Shattered Dreams” to be a highpoint on a record full of highpoints. The melodies and guitar work play off one another to great a highly infectious song that will have you singing along before you know it.
SABER do a nice job of sequencing the disk as “Time Tells All” ups the speed and heaviness taking the listener on a rollercoaster ride instead of a ride on a flat road. You might be fooled into thinking that “Shadow of You” is the obligatory ballad based on the mellow intro but don’t touch that skip button because the track morphs into an awesome metal piece that fits perfectly with all of the material on “Lost in Flames”. The record ends with a double dose of fist pounding metal with “On the Hunt” providing some cool gang vocals on the chorus and “Steel Breaker” finishing things off with another frantic piece that reminds me a little of their earlier track “Phoenix Rising”.
I will admit that being older gives me the perspective of having lived through many phases of the metal movement. While I enjoy many of the genres and sub-genres that have been created, I always go back to that traditional metal sound that I grew up liking and collecting. I am so thankful that there are bands like SABER that fly that NWOTHM fly proudly and keep that sound alive. Their newest disk “Lost in Flame” is eight songs of full-on traditional metal performed with style and conviction. My only hope is that they don’t spend another four years before releasing another record. In the meantime, how about a tour with a stop in my hometown of Houston?
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