Chris Black, Chris Kerns and Matt Johnson started
Pharaoh in 1997
in an attempt to prove heavy metal wasn’t dead. The band’s music
is progressive and technical with a power metal feeling. Some thrash influences
would also make sense, but mostly classic eighties in my opinion, but with
a modern tone. Their sweeping solos and melodic riffing can be quite pleasing
to your ears. The powerful and driving, singing vocals, performed with a
metal grimace are done by Tim Aymar. You might know him from Control Denied
and Psycho Scream. Pharaoh found him through a mutual friend. On this release
he sounds like a cross between the Eric Adams (Manowar), Matt Barlow (Iced
Earth), and Steve Grimmett (Grim Reaper). The vocals are the best element
of the band, they really push these songs up a notch. There is also a guest
performance on this disc. On the first track “Sunrise” Chris
Poland does guest guitars. Track 10 closes this 53-minute disc out with
a nice instrumental. Overall this disc is pretty good but for a lack of
better terms, some parts seem a little dry and they suck the vitality out
of those songs. It seems that they tried to make up for those with their
leads and solos. They have a lot of the right ingredients; they just need
to mix them in a way to make this everyone’s favorite dish.
Rating: 76
Reviewed By: Jeffrey D. Adkins |
