Human Fortress (ex-Timezone) will be big. They should, because 'Lord of Earth...' justifies it. Human Fortress have made, not the most original, but a distinctive album. The band operates in melodic metal field (power metal, heavy metal), which is beginning to be very populated nowadays.

Songs are different enough from each other and album doesn't really bore me at any point through its 50 minutes duration, even though there's some not so inspiring compositions too. Only the ballad 'Forgive & Forget' and the short instrumental 'The Fortress' are something that probably could have been left out, in my opinion. The songs flow on nicely, sometimes fast (e.g. 'The Dragons Lair' and 'Light beyond Horizon') and sometimes mid-tempo (eg. my favourites, which are the epic title track and 'Under Black Age Toil'). The best thing is, that most of the music has an individual touch to it and is never easily compared to anything else on vast fields of melodic metal. Lyrics seem to deal with dark age stuff, but sadly I got no lyric sheet, so I ain't gonna guess. All in all, the songs sound mature and epic, but never crossing the line to pompous.

Human Fortress was born in 1999 and within a couple years they have merged into a tight unit. Playing is excellent and vocals of Jioti Parcharidis are really breathtaking and diverse, if a bit powerless at times. His voice climbs from deeper range to the skies without trouble. His voice doesn't annoy me, unlike many singers in melodic metal bands, who can easily make me feel uneasy. And synths aren't too familiar, which is always a nice touch on any synth-including record. Guitar work is simply great! Production is crystal clear, but I'd like a bit more punch. In general, this album sounds very modern, rather than "middle age" music, but of course here's a lot of elements building the atmosphere of the yore.

What impresses me a lot is the truth, that this really is the band's debut album. Thanks for this good metal album, guys! And the next one will be better, I bet.

Rating: 7½ (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
12/17/2001 23:09