Customer Reviews

Sign of the Winner

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

What happened to this guys?! What did they drink?! When I first listened to this cd I went like "WOW!!!" Amazing!! Ben Sotto vocals are great!! ANd the music itself is great too. It is very melodic and resembles Gamma Ray a little.I think this is a true power metal cd. Fast and melodic. A great buy. I f you don't have it....what are you waiting for??

I listen to all types of metal and there is a lot that is great... But this record has it all: 80s screems, melodic guitar harmonies and so on... Buy this CD for Gods sake!!!!! You won't be disapointed!!!!!!!!

Sign of the Winner and Dust to Dust are both masterpieces. Ben Soto has one of the most diverse voices in power metal. The drums are very creative unlike some power metal. The song writing is interesting and there is not a bad song on the CD.

Get it now.

Listen to what everyone else is saying here and go out and buy this album. If you are a fan of Helloween, Freedom Call, or Gamma Ray this would be perfect to add to your collection. The song The World Will Be Better is awesome and extremly melodic, the singer's voice is killer and the music is very fast. Don't do what I did and hold off on buying this album because no one had heard of them, go get it, you will have the melodies stuck in your head for days.

For starters, I'd like to acknowledge that many [people] do not concur with my evaluation of this wonderful album. Or, should I say that although there are many [people] that see the merits of this album, there are almost an equal amount who have bashed this album to varying degrees.

I like all sub-genres of Progressive Metal and what I like best about Epic Power Metal is that it seems to be the most uplifting of the sub-genres. I find it to be a pick me up. If I have to do some mindless task, I can throw on my discman, play a Heavenly, Secret Sphere, Thy Majestie or Freedom Call CD and voila, I'm a Dynamo. Epic Power Metal and Operatic Symphonic Metal (Therion) are my music styles of choice when I have work to do.

Epic Power Metal is also very Melodious and Sign of the Winner is about the most Melodious album I've ever heard. It is a powerful and wonderfully executed musical experience, featuring, in addition to Ben Sotto on vocals, Maxence Pilo on drums, Fred Leclercq on Guitar, Pe Pelisson on bass, a very full and lush sound in the form of a backing orchestra and choir, plus numerous catchy hooks and a refrain interestingly woven through several of the compositions. Most of the songs are played at the normal power metal speed (not like Rhapsody's ulta speed but the slower user friendly speed) with some varying tempo and intensity. Lead singer, Ben Sotto does a credible job, though if Heavenly has a weakness, Ben does have trouble on some of the higher notes, which is not surprising considering the high pitch he sings in. Ben's voice is quite high, maybe a soprano but extremely pleasant and very compatible with the music.

The songs of Sign of the Winner are consistently good with none being below four and a half and several at five stars. Standout songs If there are any, are: the instrumental introduction - "Break the Silence", "Destiny", "Sign of the Winner", "The World will be Better", "Angel" and "The Sandman",

Similar Artists:

Dark Moor, Kamelot, Sonata Arctica, Thy Majestie, Rhapsody, Freedom Call, Secret Sphere, Dragonland, Edguy, Avantasia, Mob Rules, Supreme Majesty

Conclusion

Maybe it's because they're French that some reviewers bashed them!

Maybe it's because they're French that they're music is so flowing and melodious!

Maybe it's because they're French that they are so damn good!

Maybe, just maybe, you would like them!

For starters, I'd like to acknowledge that many [people] do not concur with my evaluation of this wonderful album. Or, should I say that although there are many [people] that see the merits of this album, there are almost an equal amount who have bashed this album to varying degrees.

I like all sub-genres of Progressive Metal and what I like best about Epic Power Metal is that it seems to be the most uplifting of the sub-genres. I find it to be a pick me up. If I have to do some mindless task, I can throw on my discman, play a Heavenly, Secret Sphere, Thy Majestie or Freedom Call CD and voila, I'm a Dynamo. Epic Power Metal and Operatic Symphonic Metal (Therion) are my music styles of choice when I have work to do.

Epic Power Metal is also very Melodious and Sign of the Winner is about the most Melodious album I've ever heard. It is a powerful and wonderfully executed musical experience, featuring, in addition to Ben Sotto on vocals, Maxence Pilo on drums, Fred Leclercq on Guitar, Pe Pelisson on bass, a very full and lush sound in the form of a backing orchestra and choir, plus numerous catchy hooks and a refrain interestingly woven through several of the compositions. Most of the songs are played at the normal power metal speed (not like Rhapsody's ulta speed but the slower user friendly speed) with some varying tempo and intensity. Lead singer, Ben Sotto does a credible job, though if Heavenly has a weakness, Ben does have trouble on some of the higher notes, which is not surprising considering the high pitch he sings in. Ben's voice is quite high, maybe a soprano but extremely pleasant and very compatible with the music.

The songs of Sign of the Winner are consistently good with none being below four and a half and several at five stars. Standout songs If there are any, are: the instrumental introduction - "Break the Silence", "Destiny", "Sign of the Winner", "The World will be Better", "Angel" and "The Sandman",

Similar Artists:

Dark Moor, Kamelot, Sonata Arctica, Thy Majestie, Rhapsody, Freedom Call, Secret Sphere, Dragonland, Edguy, Avantasia, Mob Rules, Supreme Majesty

Conclusion

Maybe it's because they're French that some reviewers bashed them!

Maybe it's because they're French that they're music is so flowing and melodious!

Maybe it's because they're French that they are so damn good!

Maybe, just maybe, you would like them!

This cd is unbelievable. These guys are a french power bomb. They prove that germany is not the only country that can produce fantastic metal. Simply put, the signer is incredible with fantastic guitar and keyboard solos, duets, riffs, what ever you can think of these guys rule. The songs are very melodic and fast paced. The best song on here as to be sign of the winner with stunning vocals and incredible instruments. Do not ignore these guys and buy this cd. You will fall in love immediatly.

Top notch follow up to their debut. Their music is similar to a Gamma Ray/Stratovarius thing. They are fast and melodic like Gamma Ray and classically inclined like Stratovarius. They album opener is a classical piece which rocks!

There's a lot to say about this 54 minutes of beauty. To start things off, I'll tell you what the band sounds like. I agree with everyone else here who says that there are Gamma Ray influences left and right, but not so much Stratovarius. Trust me on the Stratovarius part - I have everything they released from Fright Night in 1989 through Elements this year including a live album for a total of 11. I think what everybody is trying to say is that the vocalist, when he's not "screaming", sounds like Timo Kotipelto of Stratovarius. To be honest, I find the Stratovarius half of Heavenly's influence truely coming from a Valley's Eve sound (even though Valley's Eve is a newer band - that's just what they sound like to me). Heavenly is quite the heavy and fast band with near 1000 out of a 1000 keyboards that make this sound accompany the cover art beautifully. (Isn't that some of the best cover art ever?!) Speed wise, the band reminds me exactly of Helloween's CD "The Dark Ride". The average song is about as fast as Stratovarius's song "Will the Sun Rise". The biggest key to me is that there ARE NO BALLADS. The slowest it gets is about an "If I Could Fly" tempo. On a final description note: when the singer isn't trying to imitate Timo, he sounds similar to Dark Moor's singer - who I think is female.

Alright, now for some points about the album itself. The intro: 4 minutes long and beautiful - no singing. (Is that like the longest intro ever written or what?:)) It is as good as the intro on "Timeless Departure" (that's death metal - you may not be familar with that one... ... ... ... ... can't think of anything else... sorry). The next song, Destiny (the name of a Stratovarius song) is 7 minutes long and is far from as good as the CD gets. The title track is also nothing special for me. Then we get a wake up call. I agree with one of my fellow reviewers saying that "The World Will Be Better" is an absolutely unbelievable melodic metal song. It is also 7 minutes long and once you get to the 3 minute mark, it is just one good 20 second section after another, pouring in for the whole song from then on in. It's amazing. Then, the immediate next song is almost just as good!, if you can believe it. At the start of track 6, you'll think it's an instrumental mid-tro. Well, guess again! It is only 2 minutes long and the second minute is sheer speed. Then onto track 7, an average melodic song. "The Sandman" (track 8) is the 3rd amazing song on the CD. Track 9 is average just like track 7. Onto the 9 minute closing song... I can compare the first half of it to the nearly exactly same legnth closer on "The Dark Ride". BUT, this epic gets slow and atmospheric for 2 or so minutes in the middle, but revives for a final speed treat before you have to go back to the first song and start over. The Dark Ride doesn't do that, so epic to epic, this ones better, in my opinion. Sorry, no bonus tracks (that would make the CD PERFECT, wouldn't it?)

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