Screaming Shadows – Legacy of Stone
REVIEWS
Band: Screaming Shadows
Title: Legacy of Stone
Genre: Heavy/Power Metal
Label: The Vaults
Release Date: 12th November 2021.
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Tracklist:
1. Free Me
2. Heaven Or Hell
3. Crimes With No Name
4. Love And Hate
5. The Devil’s Mask
6. Lost Child
7. Live For Your Dreams
8. Stand In Line
9. Shake Your Blood
10. Where I have Been Up To Now
Line-up:
Francesco Marras: guitars
Alessandro Marras: vocals
Michele Sanna: drums
Jürgen Steinmetz: bass
If an album gives good vibes, then it's the right one, doesn't always happen but with 'Legacy Of Stone' this magic was repeated.
When Francesco Marras wrote to me for a review of the new album by his band Screaming Shadows, at first I didn't connect the name to the albums I had listened to in the past, then I realised that I was talking to a part of Italian musical history, the good kind, that has managed to make its way.
Fifth album for Italian band Screaming Shadows who return with "Legacy Of Stone" after a ten year break, a considerable period of time in which the lineup has changed and in fact we find bassist Jurgen Steinmetz (Silent Force) and vocalist Alessandro Marras, which was present in a track from the previous 'Night Keeper'.
In "Legacy Of Stone", the band led by virtuoso guitarist Francesco Marras (Tygers Of Pan Tang) offers us the excellent combination of classic heavy and melodic power metal in ten solid tracks between performing skills and technique. Screaming Shadows moves slightly away from the sounds they had accustomed us to with their previous albums, maintaining the power 'allure' but moving away from prog and giving us more metal sounds reminiscent of the 80s.
If the opener 'Free Me' shows us a melodic side with its excellent guitar and good rhythm, 'Heaven Or Hell' fills us with positive energy with a classic, lashing hard rock, a very good anthemic, with the brilliant bass line underlining the sound.
Hard rock sounds also in the following "Crimes With No Name" with great riffs and a very powerful atmosphere, while "Love And Hate" has a good approach with power metal where speed and beautiful riffs appear, a track that goes back to the roots of the band while maintaining a fresher approach.
"The Devil's Mask" reveals once again the excellent rhythmics with Jürgen Steinmetz's bass and Michele Sanna's drums, both remarkable throughout the album, while "Lost Child" has a very good classic metal approach in Iron Maiden style at its beginning, which is convincing and expresses energetic heavy power with NWOBHM references, very well structured and involving.
The rhythms of "Live For Your Dreams" are sustained and lively, with rich and incisive riffs, good mood and intensive sound, good also "Stand In Line" but it's "Shake Your Blood" the incredibly powerful track in which the band shows all their artistic skills and Alessandro Marras proves once again to be a virtuoso guitarist, giving life to a really impressive song.
A traditional and melodic power sound for the beautiful "Where I Have Been Up To Now", good melodic impact with a full-bodied and emotional sound for a strong composition in which Screaming Shadows shows itself to be compositionally excellent.
Between memorable structures, superb solos and the firm voice of Alessandro Marras, accompanied by sustained rhythmic, “Legacy Of Stone” is an album that deserves its due attention, not forgetting the production that does justice to the work. A vibrant and excellent album that will be well received both by those who have always followed the band and by new followers.
Highly recommended.
Valeria Campagnale
magazinerockersandotheranimals@gmail.com