Fragments of the Moon

The explosion of the Power Metal genre in the late 1990s was not unique to Europe, although the bulk of the most well known bands hail from there. Among the more obscure outfits are a collection of quite apt musicians that round out the Japanese band known as Concerto Moon. The brand of metal they play is a blend of Malmsteen driven Neo-Classical metal meshed with some late 80s speed metal influences, as it seems that the influence of Painkiller has reached well into the Far East.

Guitarist Norifumi Shima is the principle attraction, showcasing a technically driven yet musical display of sweep picking lines and scale runs, as well as plenty of solid power metal riffs. Keyboardist Osamu Harada, who plays all of the studio tracks on this release (the live material is played by a different keyboardist who is now the permanent member) is equally as able in the soloing department, but showcases a greater strength for adding texture to the whole. Takao Ozaki’s vocals are highly reminiscent of both Rob Halford and Mark Boals, although neither was known for singing in Japanese.

The bulk of music on here is vintage Malmsteen worship accompanied by a strong mixture of earlier influences, specifically Judas Priest, Rainbow and Black Sabbath. “Cry for Freedom” has an overall atmosphere quite similar to Sabbath’s “Heaven and Hell”, and occasional flirts with sounding like Rainbow’s “Stargazer” between the Malmsteen and Blackmore inspired solos. “Alone in Paradise” has an overtly Baroque inspired pipe organ prelude, followed by textbook Malmsteen speed metal.

“Holy Child” definitely sounds like something inspired by slower Malmsteen works on the “Marching Out” and “Trilogy” releases. “Hold on (to feeling)” seems a bit more influenced by cock rock outfits like Dokken, although the solos continue to follow the same Neo-classical style that Norifumi handles with ease. “Over the Century” includes some nice guitar noises at the beginning, sounding almost like an airplane ready to take off, and when it does we get another Dio era Sabbath inspired song.

The live tracks on here are taken from the band’s tour for their previous album “Father to Sun”, which was recorded one year before this one in 1997, though its official release date on Limb Music was after this album. Like with most quality power metal outfits, what we get is something that is of high quality, particularly Norifumi’s guitar soloing, although Takao’s singing is equally as powerful on here as it was on the studio material. If I had to pick a favorite out of the 3, I’d have to go with “Into the Fire” for the sheer amount of speed and energy combined with a solid set of keyboard and voice work.

Although this is not the first time that we’ve seen a band like this, the music on here is solid and anyone who can get past the words being in a different language will enjoy it. I am something of an Anime fanatic so I am accustomed to hearing music sung in Japanese, which I am not fluent in. When you listen to the songs, you don’t really need the words; the sounds behind them and the song’s title provide all that is needed to get the right impression from it. Fans of Hammerfall, Axel Rudi Pell, Pegazus, Yngwie Malmsteen, and older Dio/Sabbath music are encouraged to check these guys out.