Babylon - Tales of Doom

Reviewed at: pittriff.com

Man In Black Music, a small label out of the Pacific Northwest, is seemingly doing its very best to bring back the excitement of metal's olden days. Granted they are doing it in small dosages, but at least they are trying. BABYLON is the newest band for MIB's main man Bryce Van Patten who gave me one of my favorite albums from 2003 with his band JESTERS MOON. I have been anxiously awaiting the sophomore release from JM, but it would seem that this three song disc will have to satiate my desire. By way of sound this comes very close to being JESTERS MOON's twin brother, but in subject matter it is more of a kissing cousin. Whereas JM contained songs that were based on modern subjects, Tales of Doom dives into the days of yore. To be honest I couldn't care less, it only matters to me if the music kicks ass, and from what I hear on the two actual songs on the disc it certainly succeeds. After a melancholic keyboard intro called "The Nightmare" (Van Patten really knows how to use keys to great effect) we get a very straight forward rocker called "Reach For the Sun" and a slower and more structured track named "St. Crispen's Day". I really dig both songs on just about every level. Van Patten handles vocals and for those not familiar with his voice it may take a little time to grow on you. I know that was the way it was with me. He is not your prototypical lead singer and never will be, but he gets the job done and lets the music do the rest. The plan for the band is to release two more 3 song discs by the end of the year, in effect giving you an entire albums worth of metal over about 6 months. Seems like a big risk to me, but I liked Volume I enough to look forward to the next installment.

PITRIFF RATING - 8/10

Reviewed at: maximummetal.com

US metal gets a new entry with Babylon, an entertaining metal act from Portland, Oregon. "Tales Of Doom: Chapter 1" marks the first chapter in the band's EP trilogy. The band plan on releasing the next two chapters later this year, but for now we have the first chapter finished and in the can. "Chapter 1" is a really good effort from this group, with true metal label Man In Black Music on board to bring us the metal goods.

I don't know a whole lot about this band, but from the label's website it explains that Babylon was born from the ashes of New Wave band Psycho. This new version of the group is very interesting to me simply because they sound German. "Chapter 1" has a huge Tuetonic feel to it, almost like a Grave Digger or Gladiators type of sound. Vocalist Bryce Van Patten, who also sits behind the drum kit, has a rather rough delivery, almost sounding like Chris Boltendahl (Grave Digger) at times. His voice is very low in this mix, but it is an underground release and I've come to expect, if not welcome, that sort of thing. Eddie Nixon fills out the guitarist slot in fine fashion, really highlighting this release with some tremendous lead work. Bassist Allen Grey finishes the three piece off.

This EP contains three tracks, one of which is unfortunately an instrumental intro in "The Nightmare". After that comes "Reach For The Sun", a great power metal cut that just sprints right out of the gate. Eddie Nixon does a great job with the strings here, galloping along in Euro style and mixing in some soaring leads. The chorus works out quite well here, adding in a bit of a sing-along feel to the track. The EP closes with "St. Crispen's Day", a song that really captures that German power mood, with Grave Digger and Unrest coming to mind.

Unfortunately there isn't a whole lot to say about three songs. Babylon have pulled off a great effort here, with this short recording being very enjoyable and entertaining. I'm looking forward to the next chapter and hope to see this band get an opportunity to open for some larger acts. Men In Black Music looks very promising, with the likes of The Prowlers and Dr. Mastermind among their large roster.

Reviewed at: rockarolla.com.ar

Editados por el pequeño pero muy prometedor sello independiente Man In Black Music, Babylon es un trío de Portland, Oregon, y éste “Tales of doom: Chapter I” es el primer capítulo de una saga de tres EP’s que la banda planea lanzar en breve.
El disco consta de sólo tres temas, siendo el primer track un instrumental que hace las veces de intro, y los dos restantes, como el título del trabajo lo indica, están enrolados en el doom metal, con influencias de Trouble y Candlemass.
El vocalista Bryce Van Patten, quien además se hace cargo de la batería y los teclados, tiene el registro perfecto para el estilo, entre nasal y grave al estilo Messiah Marcolin, mientras que el guitarrista Eddie Nixon provee de muy buenos riffs apoyados por certeros teclados, y el bajo latente de Allen Grey.
No es mucho mas lo que puedo agregar a esta review, si decir que el arte de tapa es excelente, y que Babylon te deja con ganas de oír mas temas, tal vez un álbum de larga duración sería una buena idea, cierto muchachos?

Sitio web:
www.maninblackmusic.com

Comentado por Javier (Junio 2005)