Did I hear anyone say that classic heavy metal is dead? Well, they couldn’t have been more wrong! Did anyone say that a musician should only stick to one genre? Or that they can only be good at doing one type of music? Hell no!
This is exactly what Mike LePond, bassist of prog metal gods Symphony X clearly demonstrates in his off-spring Silent Assassins! That a rock musician can be just as versatile as a classical performer and his talent is free to soar in different directions. That heavy metal clearly has not exhausted its energy and has the endless power to rule.
If you are a fan of classical, real, emotional, heartfelt heavy/power/thrash metal and have not heard of Silent Assassins just yet, you must get your hands on this:
The album has been released last year, but is yet to pick up speed and conquer wider metal audience. Labeled a super group of “Metal Royalty”, the band is powered by ultra talented Symphony X’s virtuosi Mike LePond and Micheal Romeo, mighty vocals of Alan Tecchio (Hades/Watchtower/Seven Witches), and “Metal” Mike Chlasciak (Haford/Testament/Sebastian Bach). The album? An epic tribute to heavy metal from its best era, truly amazing and captivating with its varied melodies and themes, amalgamation of styles and techniques.
You may hear stuff that reminds you of something familiar and well loved… Like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Manowar, or perhaps Savatage, or Metallica’s early years… all of which mixed and performed at the high standard one could only expect from high class professionals that the core musicians of Symphony X are.
Lyrics, as expected, are based on mythology, literature and history, which doesn’t make the music predictable, but does bring us back to the traditions of The Best. Think Manowar, Halloween, Hammerfall, and the likes! Solid, hearty metal enriched with great melodies, traditional power/speed stuff, mixed with romantic medieval and Celtic motifs (think Greensleeves and Blackmore’s Night traditions), perfect guitar-drum sync, powerfully tempting you to nod your head off. Citar intros, powerful riffs, emotional choruses: simply enchanting.
To make things even more exciting, I can announce that Mike LePond has agreed to give me an interview while touring with Symphony X: rare privilege and a true honour!
Thank you, Mike, for being the lovely and friendly guy that you are – demonstrated by yet another generous gesture:
Stay tuned, as the interview will consist of three parts… exciting and exclusive!
Track Listing:
- Apocalypse Rider
- Red Death
- The Quest
- The Outsider
- Masada
- Silent Assassins
- Ragnarok
- The Progeny
- Oath Of Honor
You can find Silent Assassins on SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/knifefightmedia/mike-leponds-silent-assassins-apocalypse-rider
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