The Arrival
[Limb Music]

Have you ever experienced a band whose lead singer takes away any chance of ever enjoying them? Such is the case with Rising Faith, a Swedish speed/power metal band in the vein of Iced Earth, Blind Guardian, and older Helloween. It's a damn shame that the singer is completely annoying, because these guys can play, and they have some great riffs and songs.

Singer Kristian Wallin seems to be trying too hard to emulate other singers of the power metal genre. He too often strays out of his range, going out of tune and sounding very thin and weak. He sounds like a cross between the Scorpions' Klaus Meine (whose voice I actually like) and Dexter from The Offspring (yes, you read that correctly).  Mr.Wallin sounds very awkward and unsure of himself. Perhaps if he stayed in a more comfortable range, the results would have been more positive. He shows some signs of hope at times, but he just seems out of his element. Also, many of the melodies on The Arrival are very similar, making it sound like only a few different songs, rather than thirteen.

As far as the rest of the band goes, they are very solid and have written some pretty heavy riffs and leads. Although primarily power metal, Rising Faith add a heavy dose of thrash as well. The rhythm guitar tone is quite thick for the power metal genre, and they tune lower than most bands of this type.

The production on The Arrival is excellent. Clear but with plenty of bottom end, the guitars are well-recorded. Drums are solid in tone, and bass guitar can be heard most of the time.

I really wanted to like this album. Seeing as vocals are the focal point of Rising Faith, there's not much chance of me listening to this too much. I think that a singer with a lower range would complement them much better. I am interested to see how they will mature on their next album.