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Silent Force > Worlds Apart > Reviews
Silent Force - Worlds Apart

Yngwie Malmsteen + Helloween = Silent Force - 91%

Mr Matt, April 25th, 2018

Silent Force's "Worlds Apart" is really something special. I really didn't expect what I got from this album. While this album may show off mostly power metal stereotypes, Silent Force does a really good job at making it compelling and great. A big element in making this so is (as you might expect) the E-flat tuning. Flat and/or sharp keys (to me at least) have quite a more compelling and passionate sound than natural keys.

The album got me really hooked by the time "Master Of My Destiny" came up. The album is at its best by the middle through the end. Better guitar solos, more compelling choruses, they're much heavier, and great drum rhythms. There are also some tracks that have guitar solos at the beginning. Great way to show off and get an energetic song off to a good start. The vocal harmony for the choruses are also just as great. I heard mostly three voices that sing major and/or minor triads. Sounds a bit like Hammerfall when a song reaches the chorus on this album. These guys sound like metal angels when they do that. Good job on that.

The guitarist for Silent Force on "Worlds Apart" is unexpectedly amazing. Much more than your average power metal neo-classical shredder. Towards the middle to the end of the album, the guitarist just really takes it up a notch in terms of skill and intensity to where it was hard to stop listening. He used more Yngwie Malmsteen-like stuff, which always works for making metal music better. When I come to think about it, the guitarist sounds like a mix of Yngwie Malmsteen and Kai Hansen. Good job, Alexander Beyrodt (Silent Force guitarist). While on the subject of guitars, there were some Helloween-like/quality riffs. Always glad to hear those. Much like adding Yngwie Malmsteen-like stuff in solos always makes stuff better, Helloween-like stuff always makes riffs better and more interesting.

Also, I can not forget the keyboard player for Silent Force, who might just be the best guy in the band. His keyboard playing on "Worlds Apart" is simply impeccable. His best is probably at "Death Comes In Disguise". To arpeggiate like a guitar on a keyboard like what the keyboard player for Silent Force, for example, is amazing and must not be ignored. Until recently, I didn't know you could do that on a keyboard.

In closing, this would be a great album to show someone new to power metal to, or even to the general public. Much of the stuff Silent Force does on "Worlds Apart" are typical power metal stereotypes, but it's awesome. "Worlds Apart" is a huge recommendation of mine. I would consider putting it on my "Power Metal Essentials" list. Maybe.

A realization of greatness. - 83%

AnalogKid, July 14th, 2012

My affection for Silent Force is pretty well known to those who know my musical tastes, and Worlds Apart is where it started. Though I discovered a couple of songs from this album early on via Pandora radio, it took me some time to actually acquire the album, and even longer to discover its secrets. Though Silent Force has a very strong undercurrent of German power metal, their adventurous tendencies, coupled with Cooper’s strong and unique vocal talents, have always defied being classified as a cookie-cutter example of the genre.

However, you might not know it when “Ride The Storm” cracks open the album in royal glory. With a chorus for the ages and the band’s signature hooks that avoid melodic norms, this is finally the powerful opener that Silent Force didn’t quite hit on the head with The Empire Of Future or Infatuator. Interestingly, the melodically brilliant “No One Lives Forever” is inverted in a sense, as the rather basic chorus is almost a letdown after the infectious verses and prechorus. The inclusion of “Hold On” hearkens back to tracks recorded on the band’s debut, only with better production and a shimmering, well-layered chorus that puts it head and shoulders above Cooper and company’s first attempts.

Arguably, Worlds Apart can be criticized as being more formulaic than its predecessors, especially The Empire Of Future. Some will say “dumbed down”, some will say “less progressive”, and some will say “just boring”. Me? I think the band just decided that it was time for them to blow the gauges and play some really catchy tunes. Though there’s some truth to each of the negative statements above, let’s be clear about one thing: you won’t find brilliant choruses like these in the catalogues of most bands, nor as frequently in the Silent Force’s previous works. In addition, the identity of the first two albums is still present, it has merely evolved into a more carefree, joyous spirit that relishes just being alive.

Let’s talk guitars. This album is undoubtedly more basic in some respects, but the better riffs and the solos, in particular, are some of the band’s finest, and on par with (or better than) what I’ve heard from Beyrodt in Sinner or Primal Fear. Worlds Apart also tends to emphasize dynamic shifts in ways that the band’s previous work did not. Combined with the melodicism of the album, this means that guitar leads tend to receive more attention than in the past. See the opener and “Master Of My Destiny” for examples. Symphonics are also paraded a bit on tracks like “Merry Minstrel”, which happens to be an excellent all around song, featuring soaring vocals, biting riffs, and a couple of the finer guitar solos, both relaxed and urgent.

Ultimately, Worlds Apart comes across as a little bit top-heavy. In particular, I find “Spread Your Wings” to be too silly, with a child singing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” in the introduction, followed by a somewhat trite ballad. Though it does redeem itself somewhat with fine singing, soft songs, alas, are not this band’s strong suit. “Iron Hand” offers redemption, but ultimately “Heart Attack” and the final title track can’t be measured by the same yardstick as the very strong first half.

Slowly and surely, Silent Force grows more adept with each release. Worlds Apart is indicative of the group’s mastery of melodic power metal, and an easy segue into their modern sound. It receives regular play from me, and deserves a place in any power fan’s collection.

Original review written for Black Wind Metal

An upgrade from "Infatuator" - 73%

IronDreamer, September 15th, 2006

This album succeeds in being quite a bit more consisten that its' predecessor. However, I feel that there are no highlights quite to the level of either previous album. The result is a pretty solid power metal album, which rises above the genre's noise thanks to the unique vocals of D.C. Cooper.

Opener "Ride the Storm" and the swift "Heart Attack" are the highlights for me, however neither is particularly sublime, just a bit catchier and exciting than the others. All the tracks, save one, are mid to up tempo with a typical power metal production and overall sound. There are a few neoclassical flairs here and there, which keep the album a bit more interesting than some power metal releases. Unlike the previous album, most every track has memorable and compelling vocal and/or guitar lines.

The 9/11 sentiments of "Heroes" strike me as a bit trite and contrived, however the song itself is otherwise pretty good. It's a crapshoot as to whether or not the lyrics will annoy me enough on a given day to merit skipping the track. The childspeak intro to the ballad "Spread Your Wings" is so irritating that I nearly always skip the track, and have to fast-forward through it to actually listen to the song itself, which I could only consider decent at best anyway.

If you like power metal, and/or DC Cooper, this album is a pretty solid catch. However, it's not anything particularly special, and doesn't have any tracks that really scream out for playtime either.

The best album of the year - you must hear it ! - 100%

Linda, October 8th, 2004

Where have they been all that time? Since 2001, German/American melodic metal band Silent Force have been too much of a silent force in the metal scene. Their albums “The Empire Of Future” (2000) and “Infatuator” (2001) were solid and decent releases, but weren’t successful in appealing to the mass public. That’s why I, a follower of D.C. Cooper since his Royal Hunt years, feared that they had called it quits. Until news was spread that Silent Force had been picked up by Noise Records, sublabel of the Sanctuary Records Group, home of bands as Queensrÿche, Tesla and Dokken.
Only after 1 spin of this “Worlds Apart”, it becomes clear where they have been during the past 3 years. The band, still lead by the aforementioned Cooper and guitarist Alex Beyrodt (ex-Primal Fear), have been working hard to deliver their most varied, most powerful, most melodic, catchiest and best album to date! And yes, we’re speaking of one and the same disc here. According to Beyrodt, the epicentre of the 12 songs on this record is Cooper’s performance. The tracks have been written to fully serve the man’s impressive vocals, which has resulted in a truly melodic experience for the listener. Fast tunes as opener “Ride The Storm”, “Once Again”, “Heroes” (about the firemen involved in the 9/11 incident) and “Heart Attack” and impressive mid-tempo rockers as “No One Lives Forever”, “Hold On”, “Master Of My Destiny”, “Merry Minstrel” and “Iron Hand” take turns to give you an exciting listening trip. Even the obligatory ballad “Spread Your Wings” is far above average! In other words: there’s not a single weak track in sight. Dennis Ward’s nearly perfect production is the cherry on the cake.
Fans of D.C. Cooper’s self-titled 1998 solo album who thought Silent Force was a little too heavy for them as well as Silent Force followers who found the band could do with a bit more variety can blindly purchase this album. If you’re new to these guys’ work, then think of Royal Hunt, Stratovarius, Elegy and a bit of good old Yngwie and imagine how a blend of those would sound. The Silent Force has awoken! (SL)