Blaze Bayley - Promise And Terror

No, Blaze Bayley is not just the ex-IRON MAIDEN singer. He was with MAIDEN almost 12 years ago and from that day he has been walking a path of his own. Through difficult times Blaze kept his name alive releasing really good albums that overall failed to touch the Metal audience that was just blaming him for the ’weak’ IRON MAIDEN albums. I would like to state here that Steve Harris did not take full advantage of Blaze’s voice and that’s period for me. After the "Blood And Belief" album Blaze took a dark path risking to fall into oblivion (and just that…). Fortunately, he did manage to go through and put together an excellent band with talented musician and released a killer comeback "The Man Who Would Not Die". So, two years after that release Blaze is back with "Promise And Terror".

This album was created by the same lineup featured in "The Man Who Would Not Die" and thus it sounds even more solid. Indeed, the band has found the perfect synchronicity and a killer Heavy Metal attitude. You should listen to the excellent guitar work in this one. Fast riffs and catchy guitar leads that will simply blow your ears off. Take for example the twin guitar break following the solo in "God Of Speed" after which the tempo accelerates calling to bang your head. Blaze sounds raw and 100% honest enhancing the ’live’ feeling you will get while listening the opening track "Watching The Night Sky" where he challenges his voice in higher pitches. I tell you this track sounds killer live where you can watch Blaze’s ’psyched’ face as he nails the chorus lines. Nicolas Bermudez does his part with the six strings sending shivers down your spine with cutting edge riffs and sing-along melodies that in some extent can remind you the glory days of IRON MAIDEN. But, do not expect a IRON MAIDEN-wanna be album because it is not. This a BLAZE BAYLEY album comprising all the ingredients that we loved in "Tenth Dimension" and -why not- in "Blood And Belief" releases.

The most important in this album is the ’live’ atmosphere that exists from the very first minutes. The energy simply flows from your speakers to your ears giving you the impression that you have the band performing in front of you. Songs that have already camped in my brain are "Watching The Night Sky", "City Of Bones", the "X-Factor"-esque "Comfortable In Darkness" and the deeply emotional "Letting Go Of The World" that has a hearty epic feeling all around. There is nothing to be added here. BLAZE BAYLEY produced an excellent album that I hope/wish will face the respect and success it deserves. So, blow away any IRON MAIDEN ghosts that block your vision and enjoy this one!