After the success of the first album, Metal Allegiance didn’t waste any time in getting back together to start work on the follow up which culminated in “Volume II: Power Drunk Majesty”. Led by the core 4 of legendary artists Dave Ellefson (Megadeth) Mike Portnoy (ex-Dream Theater, The Winery Dogs, Sons Of Apollo) , Alex Skolnick (Testament) and Mark Menghi and featuring once again a who’s who of the metal elite, Metal Allegiance have once again showed the power of good music done in just the right way.
Unlike the debut album that the metal quartet first put out and which featured the overwhelming number of guests including the likes of Phil Anselmo, Randy Blythe, Chris Jericho, Matty Heafy, Christina Scabbia and much more, this new one scales it back a bit and puts the focus on the core members of the band which results in a more cohesive effort and realizes an almost signature sound running through each song. It’s difficult to not hear Alex Skolnick’s thrash guitar tone or Mike Portnoy’s style of drumming and not hear their own band’s work in that but at the same time, there’s a tightness here that was maybe the only thing missing from the first one and that probably comes down to both the experience of playing together for a while now combined with the focus shifting to the main members of the band instead of cramming a multitude of guests at every opportunity. That’s not a stab at the first album, far from it but the evidence of what they wanted to achieve with Volume II is undeniable.
The opening track “The Accuser” is a solid start, kicking off with a grand entrance before leading to a thrash banger. Skolnick’s trademark sound leads the charge in guitar riffs while Portnoy keeps the tempos intact and it’s the two that really steal the show on the album through out. Props of course has to go to Dave Ellefson lending some tasty bass licks while Mark Menghi really took the reign on getting this all to click together perfectly. On vocals, Trevor Strnd from The Black Dahlia Murder lends his raspy screams for something a little different for Metal Allegiance and it works brilliantly as the opening track to the album.
From here there’s no letting up as we go through each track which all in all stands out individually and not getting lost in the mix as some supergroup type albums can potentially do. Here Armored Saint frontman John Bush stars in “Bound by Silence“, a groove oriented rocker that hits in all the right pockets like a well executed snooker ball and which also features some pretty nifty bass lines. “Mother of Sin” is the speed metal freak in the tracklist which unsurprisingly has the legendary Bobby Blitz from Overkill on vocals. Three songs in and already this one stands out as a highlight of the album.
“Terminal Illusion” brings a more classic metal tone to the vibe as singer Mark Tornillo from Accept brings his signature voice to the fold while “King with a Paper Crown” also has an an old school feel with the riffs which contrasts Amon Amarth frontman Johan Hegg’s booming growls for the most interesting track on the album but not in a bad way at all! Mid way this twister turns into a loose rocker with some swag before incorporating more melodic elements by the end. It’s things like what these two tracks offer that not only make Volume II a step up from the first album but also keeps the listener on their toes as the unexpected pour out from out of the speakers.
Continuing on with that theme, “Voodoo of the Godsend” goes tribal and of course you can’t go tribal without some Max Cavalera to make it legit. It’s a more jammy affair and it has a little of the Soulfly title track instrumentation but again, this one keeps you on your toes. “Liars & Thieves” has the always fantastic and immensley dynamic Troy Sanders of Mastodon fame bringing a little industrial tempos to the game but only before it switches up to fast thrashy stuff with frenzied guitar attacks harking back to a little Rust In Peace mode.
The final three tracks takes the foot off the gas and goes for a more heavy rock and symphonic sound starting with Death Angel’s Mark Osegueda leading the charge on the super memorable “Impulse Control” and part one of the title track which then leads into part two led by the captivating and powerful voice of Floor Jansen from Nightwish and featuring the genuis guitar playing of Joe Satriani lending some solo work to the fray. Just when you couldn’t think that things could get better and Metal Allegiance leaves you with that as the closer!
Without a doubt the guys in Metal Allegiance have outdone themselves with Volume II, if you enjoyed the first one then it’s without question that you will get into this more so.
METAL ALLEGIANCE – VOLUME II: POWER DRUNK MAJESTY
1. The Accuser (feat. Trevor Strnad)
2. Bound by Silence (feat. John Bush)
3. Mother of Sin (feat. Bobby Blitz)
4. Terminal Illusion (feat. Mark Tornillo)
5. King with a Paper Crown (feat. Johan Hegg)
6. Voodoo of the Godsend (feat. Max Cavalera)
7. Liars & Thieves (feat. Troy Sanders)
8. Impulse Control (feat. Mark Osegueda)
9. Power Drunk Majesty (Part I) (feat. Mark Osegueda)
10. Power Drunk Majesty (Part II) (feat. Floor Jansen)
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