One of the finer band acts to emerge from the guitar-hero oriented Shrapnel records, this band had a fairly unique style of power/thrash metal all their own (the only thing even close would be older Vicious Rumors). This isn't an amazing album, but some of the tracks like "Twilight of Modern Man" and "The Man Who Saw Tomorrow" are good enough for repeated listens, and almost every tune has some sort of catchy section. There seems to be a pattern with this album's lyrics, not so much a concept album but a unified theme. "Father Time", "The Day Time Stood Still", "The Hour Glass", "The Man Who Saw Tomorrow" and of course "H.G. Wells". What stands out the most on this album is the superb guitar playing, but what would you expect from a Shrapnel superstar like Tony Fredianelli? I've always liked the vocalist for this band, Steve Plocica, who has an original voice that cuts like a knife and often gets quite shrill in the upper ranges. If you want some mid 80s power metal that was probably underrated, check these guys out. I liked this better than their first album 'The Forgotten Scrolls', but not as much as 'Area 54'.

© 2000 pizarro