Gabriels - "Fist of the Seven Stars - Act 4: Five Forces"

Gabriels is slowly carving out a leading place for himself in the AOR/Melodic Metal panorama, not only in Italy but also in the rest of the world. Of course, his creation can still be defined as underground, but having reached the eighth album of a career that has always offered quality and a host of top-level guest musicians, we can say that this reality is now just waiting to take its definitive flight towards mainstream music. A bit like bands like Lacuna Coil or Rhapsody Of Fire did, if we talk about famous Italian metal bands.

However, there is a small strength and weakness in Gabriels’ music, which could perhaps slow down his rise. His proposal has never kept up with the times, looking more at the metal and progressive/neoclassical hard rock of the 1980s, much indebted to artists like Europe or Yngwie Malmsteen, so the circle of potential fans inevitably narrows. But this new album demonstrates once again how that type of sound, made up of excellent technique and excellent vocal melody, is still effective. An album still focused on the figure of Hokuto No Ken who transmits many emotions to us, from the most melancholic, almost tragic ones, to the more sunny and energetic ones (most of them).

Obviously Gabriels’ keyboards are always present but in general the space is distributed equally between all the musicians, including the excellent guests. An album for fans who are a little nostalgic for a period that has unfortunately passed, but we repeat that good songs have no time, and this album is full of them.

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