MK II

I've never heard the other Masterplan albums, the ones with Jorn, and I don't really care to. I do, however, know that this album, featuring the talents of one-time Riot vocalist Mike DiMeo, is of a higher caliber for melodic Power Metal, and one of the better ones of 2007. I mean, in a year where so many Power Metal bands fell from their thrones, Masterplan served up one hell of a curveball.

The sound on MK-II is mostly based on the guitars, which charge forward in a solid, riff-based manner not unlike what Nocturnal Rites was doing a few years back with Shadowland. The drums, done by Mike Terrana in between the five thousand other bands he is/was a member of, are also very prominent, adding a stoic, uncompromising backdrop for the guitars to flourish upon, and DiMeo's vocals are stellar; just this powerful, clear howl of pure Metal brilliance. The man has a lot of talent, and it's a shame that he recently left this band, because they had a lot of chemistry together. The songwriting here is flexibile and unpredictable, with a lot of variety, going from the DragonForce-esque "Warriors Cry," with its careening speedy tempo and high-flying chorus, to the radio-friendly "Lost and Gone," the heavy and grinding "Heart of Darkness," to the catchy anthems like "Enemy" and "Keeps Me Burning." The guitars are big and fat and heavy, the riffs are ready to stomp your ass into the ground and the lead-work is melodious and saccharine in its lush Helloween-ish manner - clearly Roland Grapow has lost none of the magic that made The Dark Ride such a pleasure.

This album is also a bit of a grower, taking multiple listens to sink in, with the rattling, wide open production job certainly being a factor here. Many of the songs are not initially spectacular, although they do have their hooks, relying on your willpower to stick with this album and allow its flowers to blossom. Where you'll initially be captivated by the more accessible tracks like "Warrior's Cry" and "Keeps Me Burning," you will also find joy in more introspective songs like "Watching the World" and "Heart of Darkness," with their slightly more obtuse and complex arrangements. Not to say that it doesn't also have its more commercial numbers - "I'm Gonna Win" and "Lost and Gone" are as fine as pop-metal constructions can get on this side of Edguy, with smooth, sticky hooks for your immediate consumption. And I've already mentioned the more anthemic songs here, the duo of "Enemy" and "Keeps Me Burning," which are two of the best songs on here. This band writes hooks so well that it ought to be a fucking crime, because it's impossible to decide the best song on here...

...until we hit the self titled track "Masterplan," which is definitely the best on MK-II! "Masterplan" is a heavy, loud n' proud romp through Painkiller country, although the band does it up with some of that old school Nocturnal Rites melody I mentioned before to create a real beast of a song. DiMeo sings his lungs out and gives the performance of a goddamn lifetime (at times resembling Hansi Kursch and at others Johnny Lindqvist), and the guitars soar and dive and weave in all manner of Power Metal acrobacy. This song alone is worth the price of admission, but the rest of the songs are good, too, so I have to say that this is a great album for any Power Metal aficionado worth his salt. You don't want to miss this.

Originally written for http://www.metalcrypt.com

It seems that vocalist Jorn Lande's departure has kicked the band's popularity in the nuts. A shame, really, since this is an outstanding power metal album and perhaps even better than Masterplan's previous two. The band ups the ante all around, providing faster songs, heavier songs, catchier songs. There's something for the whole family here.

Discussion about this album is usually centered around the new vocalist Mike DiMeo, and whether he can step up to the plate. If I may, I will offer my two cents. It is true that Jorn Lande has a greater range and a stronger voice...on the album. Having heard live recordings of the band, I can say that Jorn disappoints on the stage, while Mike DiMeo's singing is just as good live as it is on the CD. Either he uses ProTools less than his predecessor, or Jorn is getting old and doesn't have the live power he once did. Either way, Mike is a more than satisfactory singer, and I hope this new lineup holds together for a while.

No, the my biggest doubt about this album had nothing to do with the vocals. Drummer Uli Kusch has also left the band, and it was arguably his songwriting that enabled Masterplan to go above and beyond their competitors. What was the best song on Masterplan's debut? "Spirit Never Dies", written by Uli. What was the best song on Aeronautics? "Falling Sparrow", written by Uli. What would the band do now that they had jettisoned their best songwriter? Thankfully, my fears proved groundless, as the band keeps up the high level of compositional quality that has defined their work, even without Helloween's notorious ex-drummer.

(As an aside, Roland Grapow has said in an interview that Uli had written several songs worth of material for the album prior to his dismissal, and Roland asked him if he could keep them. Uli said "yes, but not for free", and Roland reportedly told him to go fuck himself and then wrote up an album with nothing but original songs!)

Do you want melodic songs? "Lost and Gone" and "I'm Gonna Win" are ready-made for radio play, with simple, catchy choruses and melodic keyboard themes. Although these are probably the softest songs on the album, they are still much heavier than Masterplan's previous singles. "Keeps Me Burning" is a harder version of "Heroes", Mike DiMeo really comes into his own on this song, putting on an emotional and raw vocal performance.

Do you want fast songs? "Warriors Cry" is a crushing speed metal anthem and a perfect album opener. "Watching the World" is a cross between "Kind Hearted Light" and "Sail on" from the first album, a fast yet mellow song with lots of flashy keyboard work. But neither can compare to the 400 pound gorilla that is "Masterplan". Everything about this song is awesome, from the Grapow's fast neoclassical riffing, to Mike Terrana's double-bass gallop, to the fist-pumping chorus "MA-STER-PLAN!" This should be a fixture of the band's live shows.

All of the other songs are the usual mid-tempo work, but even these are pulled off well. "Take Me Over" has a dissonant, down-tempo chorus that took a while to grow on me, but now I enjoy it. "Enemy" is the most rockish song on the album, it's catchy despite being a trifle generic. The only song that doesn't work is the ballad "Trust in You". DiMeo's vocals are annoying, there are no discernible hooks to speak of, and it's placement between the ultra-heavy "Masterplan" and "Call the Gypsy" seems a bit odd.

Curiously, the REALLY slow songs are among the best on the album. "Call the Gypsy" dusts off the old Helloween motif of a ticking clock before launching into a Mediterranean-flavored epic. This song would have been perfect to score the movie 300. I also get off on "Heart of Darkness", an ugly, menacing song quite similar to Helloween's "Escalation 666". It has lots of heavy riffing and a keyboard theme that is pure genius. It's cool to see that the band is overcoming the happy-sappy songwriting of their debut album, and the prog rock of their second, and is moving into darker and doomier territory.

Roland Grapow's production is great (is this really his first time behind the mixing desk?) and all of the musicians put in a great performance (except for the bassist whom I can't hear). The only complaint is Roland Grapow's solos. I heard somewhere that he improvised the whole album's leads in one take, and while I can't say if this is true or not, it certainly explains the meandering, directionless solos that don't really do anything but take up space. At least they're short.

Well, I'm sure numerous Masterplan fans wrote the band off when they heard Jorn and/or Uli left, but I'm sure this album will be enjoyed by those who don't care about metal celebrities and just want to hear good music. Believe me, MKII delivers.

Standout songs: "Lost and Gone", "Call the Gypsy", "Masterplan"

Masterplan was sort of an interesting phenomenon when they first assembled in the aftermath of the Helloween and Iron Savior split ups that occurred in early 2002. They began as a sort of darker power metal and rock version of what Helloween became in the late 1990s on “Better than Raw” and “The Dark Ride”, while also employing some old fashioned 70s rock elements. However, like every great German act that I’ve followed since my conversion to the power metal faithful, they suffered a rather drastic line-up shift that threatened to derail a rather incredible 2 album streak in a time when power metal was beginning to lose some of its steam.

When you have a sound that has been all but defined by an amazing talent like vocalist Jørn Lande, you can’t really replace him so much as you get the best vocalist that you can find and hope that his voice meshes with your already established sound. Mike DiMeo, who left Riot for similar disagreements with them as Jørn had with Masterplan, is essentially both the strongest yet the most unlikely of choices. His voice is not quite as deep and his high range is not quite as flamboyant, but he is quite capable at putting forth the necessary attitude while sounding a bit more 80s than Jorn. Nonetheless, the chief flaw on this album lies in DiMeo’s voice not quite gelling with Masterplan the way his predecessor did.

As far as Uli’s replacement goes, Mike Terrana proves to be more of a speed machine, although the drumming on Masterplan’s debut included some more technically and stylistically demanding songs. I can’t say one is better than the other, and in terms of style, the differences are not terribly noticeable so essentially no real change is reflected in the music. I’m not sure how Terrana keeps up this unbelievable touring and recording career, having seventeen past or current projects with his name attached to them, including such acts as Savage Circus, Axel Rudi Pell, and Empire.

“MK2” is precisely what Roland Grapow said it would be in the interviews leading up to it, a return to the metal style that was heard on their debut, rather than the rock-injected mix heard on “Aeronautics”, which Jorn preferred. There is actually more speed metal and raw aggression in the music of this album than on the two previous ones, taking it closer to the standard of “The Dark Ride” than any of their previous work. Even the slower radio friendly single “Lost and Gone” has this sort of impending doom in its slow thudding riffs and simplistic keyboard themes.

As far as standout songs go, everything musically is of high quality, but certain songs listen stronger because they push the envelope further than previously heard. In this department, the band’s self titled song “Masterplan” just towers over the rest. The swinging eighth note gallop riff approach heard similarly on Fates Warning’s “The Sorceress” and other metal classics mixed with the hard edged back up vocal chants (recorded backwards one time at the ending as well) make for a thrashing ass-kicking session. Other tracks such as the heavy and looming “Heart of Darkness” and the thudding anti-televangelist anthem “Take Me Over” add to the flavor as well, although more traditional speed metal tracks like “Warrior’s Cry” and “Keeps me Burning” also deserve mention.

The only thing that could potentially hold this album back a little is the change in vocalist, as I’m sure there are a large number of Jørn loyalists out there who may have written this band off since he left. I am personally pleased by the fact that Roland decided on DiMeo rather than try and get some sort of imitator to try and stand in for Jørn. There is still some work on getting their respective styles to better layer themselves into one cohesive whole, but Masterplan has definitely put forth a solid album that does not deserve to be ignored.