Reviewed by Paul S Ganney

Metal compilations can either be a best of or a pile of tracks the bands couldn't sell otherwise. This sounds far more like the former, as I'd expect from Britain's pioneering hard music ministry Meltdown spreading their net far and wide to demonstrate just how many really good bands around the world there are at the moment. Some of these units hard music followers are likely to have encountered already, while others will be completely new. The opening "Sound Of The Saints" by Chaotic Resemblance kicks things off nicely: a great vocal over a very, very solid band, riffing and rocking like their lives depended on it. Britain's Vamoosery follow and reminded me of a metalled Penetration (plus a fabulous guitar figure the Cult would have loved to have written). Four Star Revival made me think of Iron Maiden meets Judas Priest, with Crushing The Deceiver being more at the thrash end of the metal spectrum. Waiting For Ravens made me think of Nightwish (albeit with a male vocal) and was far too short, 2 Minute Mirror sat at the punkier end of metal (and at 1:45 sat within the name of the band well) and Blood Covenant were an interesting thrash/doom/symphonic crossover. P.J.Bostic had a really mesmerising riff, XIII Minutes had some very good rhythmic chops under an alternating guttural/sung vocal with a glorious guitar figure and Rifferspock occupy a Sum 41-style pop/rock field. Sardonyx are very Germanic in feel a la Krokus with a great crescendo build, Saving Darkness produce a Stiltskin-style wall of noise and Peter118 are a rapid rifferama which is almost punk. Ray LeGrand is anthemic/symphonic with a Helloween type of guitar, leaving R.A.I.D to close the album with their riff and rap that made me think of the Beastie Boys. With 15 tracks I'd love to review each one in detail. But suffice to say this compilation is a very useful way of getting up-to-date with the various sub-genres of Christian hard music

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