PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
XI:The Days before Tomorrow is the eleventh release and marks the debut of new lead vocalist Brian Jones.
Despite the bands long history, they have been hit and miss for me, I only like around half of the releases, but after listening to this one, i had to double check to see if it was the same band.
This is impressive, the band sound fresh and new, It’s obvious having Brian Jones on-board have given the band a new lease of life, because I don’t remember them being quite this good. This is as near to a masterpiece as you can get, full of huge, majestic, soaring powerful songs. Steve’s solos are beautifully melodic and incredibly expressive, and Brian’s vocal’s just “Fit” right in.
“Babylon” starts with a big, fast riff and the song doesn’t lose your attention for a second, coupled with some killer guitar work from Steve, and this is a great opening track.
“Death Comes Tomorrow” follows and it builds to one of the most powerful choruses you’ll ever hear
“Gather Up the Snow” melts your ears with thick, massive guitar riffs, and once again Brian stamps his mark all over it, Brian is not just the “new singer”, he is a fully fledged member of the band.
The guitar solo in “My Apologies” stands out and is beautifully played, this solo fits the song perfectly, this isn’t Steve’s ego taking you for a ride, there is a very real need for a solo in this song, and that what you get, a beautifully crafted piece with a very real feel to it, this will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.
while every song has its own unique musical and lyrical story to tell, some of the tracks on here don’t quite work as well as the others. The punkish influence on “Caged In” and “Soul Disease” just doesn’t seem to fit with the rest of the record, though parts of both songs are catchy.
Even so this is now up there in my top 10 of the year for 2012, will it still be there at the end of the year, I hope so, because this is going to take some beating.
An Axe grinding 8/10
Lillian Axe are:
Steve Blaze – Guitar / Keyboard
Sam Poitevent – Guitar
Eric Morris – Bass
Ken Koudelka – Drums
Track Listing:
1. Babylon
2. Death comes tomorrow
3. Gather up the snow
4. The great divide
5. Take the bullet
6. Bow your head
7. Caged in
8. Soul disease
9. Lava on my tongue
10. My apologies
Lillian Axe on the web HERE
Watch the album trailer below.
