Band:	Voyager
Album:	I Am The ReVolution
Style:	Symphonic progressive metal
Release date:	September 2009

01. Land Of Lies
02. Common Ground
03. Lost
04. The Devil In Me
05. Close Your Eyes
06. Total Existence Failure
07. Straight To The Other Side
08. In My Arms
09. Times Like These
10. On The Run From The World
11. Without A Sigh
12. I Am The ReVolution

Power Metal has been around for many years now, be it the more aggressive US version or the more melodic European version. There were attempts at making it fresh, such as the Symphonic / Progressive variants and the usage of extreme vocals, so it's probably inevitable that Industrial influences would creep into the mix sooner or later. Creep is a rather appropriate word because even though 2008 saw two such albums by Karelia and Keldian, the world was not exactly set afire. I Am The ReVolution is another, though calling it a follower of trends would be unfair as the term "Industrial" can be applied rather loosely. Whilst Karelia has a colder, more mechanical industrial sound and Keldian's industrial is more on the atmospheric side, Voyager's latest opus is more "modern" and techno driven.

Delving a bit deeper into the album, one would realise that I Am The ReVolution is a bit of a hidden gem in the melodic Power Metal scene because of how fresh it sounds. It is apparent that the keyboards play a huge part in the album for the "industrial" tag to be applied, but it's probably the vocal work of Danny Estrin (also the guitarist and keyboardist anyway) that is the heart and soul of Voyager. It may take a bit of time to get used to because it's very, for the lack of a better term, "easy" to the ear. However, once you get over this, the vocal melodies are nothing short of amazing. They are catchy, progressive, almost too sweet but without being cliché, to the point where the "easy" vocals become fitting to the music as it's rather different and refreshing compared to the typical high pitched wailing or falsettos. Coupled with the techno or trance beats scattered around, the songs actually stay in your head properly even after not listening to the album a long time. The rest of the band are all competent musicians and sound like a very cohesive unit, though nothing outstanding of note either.

Perhaps it's because the geographical location that most Down Under bands get unnoticed most of the time, but Voyager has definitely put up one of the most memorable melodic Power Metal albums in 2009. Is this the onset of a wave of ReVolution for Power Metal? Probably not yet, but do check this out before this brand of Power Metal loses its novelty.