VII

This is the 7th LP put out by Olaf Lenk’s outfit known as At Vance, a band that has consistently held the top position in my opinion in the melodic power metal department for the past 2 years that I’ve been reviewing albums. It is also the first album that I’ve bought brand new, thus it doesn’t have any of the bonus tracks that were contained in all of the special editions that I amassed in my collection from this outfit. As such, I would like to note that the slightly lower score takes into account the fact that my favorite element of the band (the guitar arrangements of classical works) is not here.

Essentially At Vance has ceased to be a band in the recording studio and all of the instrumental duties are handled by Olaf himself. I am impressed by his drumming abilities, which I myself have not been able to refine to the point of being able to pull of the kind of double bass pedal work required for this style. His guitar soloing is as riveting and tasteful as it’s always has been, his sound is still crunchy and powerful, and his riffs are well detailed and are the driving force behind the songs. For those not familiar with his style, it is a unique hybrid of 70s influences such as Tony Iommi, Brian May and Ritchie Blackmore with 80s shred gods like Malmsteen and melodic structural soloists like Kai Hansen.

Many will likely accuse me of being a rubber stamp for this band because of my consistent perfect ratings, but the truth is that the band earned these ratings from me, and in the case of this particular album they did take a slight step down for one particular reason. Although by no standard a bad or mediocre singer, Rick Altzi does not quite measure up to the previous two vocalists that occupied this band’s back catalog. He has a good deal of commonality in style with Oliver Hartmann, but he lacks the powerful high range and ability to blend his voice into complex harmonies so flawlessly to create the triumphant choruses on such classics as “Power and Glory” and “The Brave and the Strong”. Likewise, he lacks the attitude and almost quirky individuality of Mats Leven which made powerful works like “The Evil in You” and “Chained” so easy to remember. Rick seems to be new to the metal world based on my not having heard of him before this release and there is naturally the possibility for improvement on later tracks.

Musically, “VII” is interchangeably tied to the same greatness as the last 6 LPs, with the same varied set of styles that maximize the possibilities within the standard non-prog. branch of power metal. You get solid melodic speed metal with the opener “Breaking the Night”, “Shine” and “Victory”, while you get an extreme thrash-like version of the same in “Truth”, rivaling most of the Painkiller worshippers out there. The mid-tempo material is naturally equally as solid, and in the notable case of “Friendly Fire”, actually outshines much of the faster stuff. Even the dreamy acoustic ballad at the end can’t help but kick ass with an inspired melody and a rich atmosphere.

If you own any of this band’s previous albums, it is a foregone conclusion that this will agree with your ears as this band’s sound has remained very consistent. Likewise, if you have a keen ear for melodic metal and have no qualms about a good deal of 80s influences in it, this is a good album to have. Barring some miraculous change in the band’s situation on their next studio LP, “Only Human” will likely remain the best thing they’ve accomplished, and should be sought before any of their other works.