Deep Under Seas of Cheese
Before you even proceed to read this review, let me warn you that there is a LOT of cheese on Majestic. There's definitely assets that make this worth an acquisition, but in order to reach these assets you have to dig yourself out of a heaping pile of Velveeta. When it comes to symphonic power metal, it's usually a hit-and-miss thing for me. Sometimes, as in the case of the newest album from 7days, I can find myself really enjoying the music. In other cases, I find myself absolutely put off by the clichéd cheesy sound - it rarely falls into the middle for me. ReinXeed is one of those few bands that falls somewhere in between the two extremes. There's definitely too much cheese for this lactose-intolerant reviewer to handle, but the music is good enough to allow me to see past most of its flaws. If you're a fan of melodic symphonic power metal, definitely give this a spin since it was one of the best releases in the genre from 2010. For people who only enjoy this genre on occasion, there are multiple releases I'd recommend before tracking down this one.
The music here is symphonic melodic power metal. This means that there's fast riffing, high-pitched vocals, layers and layers of symphonic keyboards - the whole deal. If you're not someone who enjoys this sort of thing, you won't want to check this out. As I've mentioned earlier, I'm open to power metal (Helloween is one of my favorite metal bands), but I'll admit that quite a few bands in this genre cross the level of bombast to the point of sonic indigestion. Although ReinXeed undoubtedly crosses this level of bombast, I find myself enjoying Majestic much more than I thought I would. Songs like "Once Upon A Time" are symphonic power metal at its finest. There are weak points, but they aren't too frequent (which is surprising on a 67 minute album). One of the best things about ReinXeed is the tight musicianship, which is obvious throughout Majestic. I especially have to applaud Tommy Johansson for the high-quality vocals, guitar playing, and keyboard work. The production on Majestic is good, but a bit too polished for my tastes.
Conclusion:
Majestic is an impressive album by ReinXeed that I'd recommend to most fans of symphonic power metal. This won't win any awards for originality, but it's an enjoyable release from beginning to end. Since this album is good, but far from essential, I'll go with a solid 3 stars. If you're allergic to cheese, you'll definitely hate this album. But if you're one of those people who enjoy cracking open a hunk of cheddar every now and again, Majestic isn't a bad place to turn.
Track Listing
1. Deep Under Sea (6:07)
2. Invincible (4:23)
3. Never Lie (4:24)
4. Once Upon A Time (6:04)
5. Melody Of Life (6:24)
6. Atlantis (4:58)
7. Second Chance (5:11)
8. My Paradise (6:04)
9. Neverland (4:36)
10. Majestic (7:22)
11. Lightning Strikes Again (6:23)
12. Sword In Stone (5:14)
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