Overview
Fans have waited 15 years for the third album from Demons & Wizards, the side project of Blind Guardian vocalist Hansi Kursch and Iced Earth guitarist Jon Schaffer. Was it worth the wait? That probably depends on how much you like the music their respective bands have pumped out in recent years.
What's hot?
Album opener "Diabolic" sets a high bar for the rest of the record. It's a dark, classic D&W-sounding piece, with a chorus lyric and melody designed to bring to mind their 2000 self-titled debut, in particular the song "Heaven Denies." Kursch's voice retains its power, though the melodies he's singing sometimes leave much to be desired. There's an interesting hard rock influence that comes in, particularly on "Invincible" and the AC/DC- and WASP-inspired "Midas Disease." I think they should have explored that sound just a little more.
