SKYFIRE -

SKYFIRE - SPECTRAL - ARISE
The speed by which this album was released to the public is unbelievable. According to the CD's liner notes, the album was being recorded as late as in March which is a mere two months before its street date!
On the musical front, Skyfire is an exercise in contrasts. The band and singer are comprised of a core of aggressive thrash metal. Then the band lays a thick slab of synthesizers atop the music. The synthesizers come in two flavours. One is the familiar sounds used by many others band and the second is a MIDI-styled approach akin to what one hears in video games. The contrast might be the result of the presence of two keyboardists in the band. Andreas Edlund and Martin Hanner both handle guitars and keyboards. In addition to the aforementioned thrashy route the Swedes use many melodic rhythms too which further adds to the contrast. Then again nothing matches the rhythm change on album opener, Conjuring The Thoughts, where the band goes from thrash to a completely different riff reminiscent of Ozzy Osbourne's Ultimate Sin in a split second. Who can explain it? - Ali "The Metallian"