This is the debut album from Australia’s Black Majesty. Fast-paced throughout, this band practically reeks of talent. There are many guest musicians and singers (I won’t list them all here) and the band has no official bassist on the album.
Fall of the Reich - This is a speedy song about racism. The vocals stand out very nicely and the chorus is dead on. It sets a good precedent for the rest of the album. There are some cool spoken word samples inserted at the beginning and end of the song. The solo at the end is beautiful. 4/5
Legacy - Another fast song in a similar vein as Reich, legacy offers another wicked chorus. Not a lot of variation in tempo, but the song is so **** good, you won’t care. 4/5
Guardian - The first song on the album to feature distinctive keyboards. The intro is pretty nice; there is some nice guitar work. Again, a fast song and again the chorus kick ***. 4.5/5
Sands of Time - This song starts out with a nice slow intro before picking up the pace into yet another high tempo song. There is some nice double bass drumming here providing an excellent rhythm for an excellent song. Excellent vocals and guitar work as always. 4/5
Destination - A short little instrumental. Not really necessary, but it adds to the overall album. It sounds similar to the others only without the singing. 3.5/10
Journey’s End - A bit slower than the others, this is by no means a slow song. It still moves along briskly. Yet another good song. 4/5
Colliding Worlds - One of the two best songs on SoT! This is easily my favourite song here. ‘Perfect" is the only word to describe this song. Perfect vocals. Perfect guitars. Prefect bass. Perfect drums. Perfect keyboards. Simply amazing. I wish it was a bit longer, but it is awesome as it is. 5/5
No Sanctuary - Wicked keyboard intro here; very orchestral sounding. Slow vocals over fast music in the beginning, very cool sounding. I absolutely love the chorus. 4.5/5
Beyond Reality - The other of the best tracks on the album (and my second favourite song). Starts off with a very nice mid-paced riff, and has more beautiful vocals. Similar to the other tracks here, except it just stands out way more. Clocking in at just over 8 minutes, this is the most epic song on SoT. 5/5
Lady of the Lake - Easily the worst track on SoT; this is Black Majesty’s attempt at writing a ballad. The lyrics are very cheesy and the vocals just don’t do anything for me. That being said, the music is beautiful; there is some very nice piano work here and the music feels very emotional and epic. It really sucks that they just couldn’t pull this song off, as it has so much potential. 2/5
Overall Rating:
Another welcomed addition to the power metal genre. They lyrics border on being cheesy, but, for the most part, avoid it. These guys are very talented songwriters and have a very keen sense of melody. It’s just a shame that they couldn’t do a better job with Lady of the Lake. Overall: 5/5
