Conquest
"No Boundaries" CD
Self-released
Genres: heavy metal, hard rock
May 10 - 16 2004 |
Conquest is your average eighties-influenced power metal
band. They rely on aggressive, loud guitars and scratchy,
growling vocals. If you like aggro-metal, No Boundaries
should appeal to you; however, genre outsiders are not going to be
converted. Right from the opening track, an explosive metal artifact entitled
"Just Before The Dawn," you'll know where Conquest's
priorities lie. They value loudness over accessibility,
virtuosity over melody, and ire over positivism. As such, these
songs are very solid examples of hard rock. What they
lack in melody, Conquest makes up for in pure energy. Fans of Poison,
Iron Maiden, and Quiet Riot should all be interested.
This type of music is plentiful, and Conquest - perhaps -
can be seen as just one of the herd. However, there is no
question that No Boundaries will make a solid purchase for
heavy metal fans. What sets them apart from their eighties
counterparts is their songwriting. These songs aren't nearly as
melodic as those of Twisted Sister, Quiet Riot, and the
rest. The catchiness, instead, is replaced by sheer aggression.
Typically, I would add
that the band's eighties-esque long hair and leather attire look somewhat silly
nowadays, but they'd probably kick my ass for doing so - and that fact
alone sums up their sound better than any needlessly verbose analysis
can.
80%
Matt Shimmer
[Vitals: 10 tracks, distributed by the
band, released 2003] |