Freedom Call

The Circle Of Life

Steamhammer/SPV

There was a time that I really enjoyed all power metal, even the really cheesy stuff, but then I realized just how over-done and corny the genre can be, despite the expert musicianship that goes into most of it. Freedom Call doesn’t necessarily avoid the cheese so much as they gloss it over with lots of variety in the music itself. The expected chords and percussion rhythms are there in spades, but they work in some really well done keyboard/synth arrangements that are reminiscent of more progressive bands, and in the case of “The Rhythm Of Life”, even some industrial bands.

The lyrics to these tracks won’t give you chills, as they talk about the usual sorts of power metal topics. I don’t think I need to go into specifics here. However, just as they begin to slide into the realm of cheese, they pull themselves back up with either a really up-beat catchy hook, or an unexpected change in tone. Another point in their favour: they keep the song lengths to a minimum. There is nothing on this album that could be considered an “epic”, with the longest song being only 5:52. This is excellent, since most power metal bands that venture into epic territory can’t navigate their way around it with enough force to make an impacton the listener. Songs on this album that are worth special mention: “Carry On“, “The Rhythm Of Life”, “Hunting High And Low”,and “The Eternal Flame”. The latter gets a special mention because it is the least-sounding power metal song on the album. Except the chorus, this track could easily be a modern hard rock song. It’s nice to see that these guys are able to see past the boundaries laid down by the countless power bands before them.

Stu Paterson