You're Approaching The Island Of The ....

As I've stated in a few of my posts, Savatage is my favourite band. It's hard for me to narrow that down, but if asked Savatage is the band. I first got exposed to Savatage in Highschool by the Nielsen brothers who introduced me to "Edge Of Thorns". I then picked up "Streets ..." and "Hall Of The Mountain King". I was hooked.

"Sirens" the bands debut was hard to find and so I only got it via iTunes to round out my collection. Although this album features one of my favourite Savatage songs (the title track) the album as a whole is not one I spin through frequently.

"Sirens" is raw traditional heavy metal and hints at the bands early unique sound that would peak (in my opinion) on "Hall Of The Mountain King". The title track kicks of the album with a killer riff and haunting intro. It's dark and catchy. "Holocaust" continues the dark riff work and is nice and heavy. These songs are most like the sound Savatage would polish on later releases.

"On The Run" is a mid-paced rocker with a dark groove. "Rage" and "Scream Murder" are straight up heavy metal with "Rage" having a Motorhead feel. "Living For The Night" and "Twisted Little Sister" are not bad, but seem like filler. "I Believe" has a melodic opening before jumping into an aggressive groove with a fine solo.

The album ends with the power ballad "Out On The Streets" whose sombre melody hints at a bleak hopefulness. I've always enjoyed Savatage's ballads. The bonus tracks are not bad either with "Target" being another ballad and "Living On The Edge Of Time" being faster and melodic. The hidden track ("Island Of The Kings" as listed on iTunes) is a sweet acoustic instrumental that's catchy and vivid.

Overall, I enjoyed "Sirens" and it was a solid start for the band. However, it's the follow-up ep "Dungeons Are Calling" which shows the bands true potential.

That's coming up.