Band:	Edge Of Attack
Album:	Edge Of Attack
Style:	Heavy metal, Power metal
Release date:	February 2013

01. In Hell
02. The Haunting
03. Demon (Of The Northern Seas) [feat. Ivan Giannini]
04. Take Me Alive
05. In The Night
06. Edge Of Attack
07. Rise Above
08. Forever
09. The Damned [feat. Ryan Bovaird]
10. Set The World Aflame [feat. Pellek]

Here is a cleanly classic yet modern metal debut. From the frigid lands of northern Alberta, Canada, comes Edge Of Attack: 5 young musicians with metal to spare.

Let's call it "speed metal infused U.S. power metal with special attention to melody and atmosphere." Simple enough? No? Tough.

The name Edge Of Attack is most fitting as an album title since it perfectly describes this young band in their current state. They're full of energy, hunger, and METAL, and this record can barely contain them. Even after the vigor of this debut and how it feels to be just bursting at the seams, I still feel like they have so much more to give.

Sure there are flaws, plenty, in fact. But after a few spins you can barely hear the growing pains over the sound of the incredibly fun and dynamic music. Guitars are present, creative, and drive this music home. In such riff-oriented classic metal it is easy for the songs to bleed together and I could forgive a new band for not providing much variety. Thankfully that isn't even a factor here. It's NOT driving tune after driving tune; there is clear variety in tempo, atmosphere, and melodic structure. Each song has a distinct mood and melody that will make its own mark on the listener.

Yet, despite the variety in moods, Edge Of Attack succeeds in the task of being incredibly cohesive, smooth, and streamlined. This combination is probably what has made it so memorable for me over a short time.

Female vocalist Roxanne probably has a lower voice than many of you male readers; it's a traditional metal sound that incorporates just enough femininity into the visceral tone to create something nicely unique. (I learned from interviewing the band that Roxanne used to front a grunge cover band. That made so much sense.) Guitarist Jurekk lends his voice on several tracks, both with thrashier clean male vocals and also with some appropriate growls here and there. In fact, the whole band jumps in to help vocally from time to time on several rocking anthems. I can only imagine how fun that would be in a live setting.

Probably the main problem you'll encounter initially is the mix. It's inconsistent; sometimes the lead vocals are too "in-your-face" and other times the drums are overpowering the other instruments, etc. The imbalances come and go but this rarely detracts from the incredibly fun music, once you get their sound in your ear that is. Perhaps the next album will show increased maturity... or perhaps it'll be more of the same visceral, youthful energy and creative tunes. Either way, this debut shows a band on the edge of something great and I'm excited to see what that will be.

Edge Of Attack comes out Tuesday, February 19th. Check out some of the songs and videos at the band's website and pre-order the album at their bandcamp page.