Ah yes, an album that starts with a song called “Fall Of The Reich”. Is this an indication for what I am about to hear? A not too subtle reference to Queensr˙che’s ingenious “Queen Of The Reich”, the song that started it all? Well, after one spin of this disc I can safely say it must have been an indication. The Aussies from Black Majesty play old school melodic heavy metal in the vein of early Queensr˙che, Jag Panzer and Iron Maiden.

What a pleasant surprise indeed. Black Majesty takes you on a trip back in time, back to when the aforementioned bands were still young, full of energy and still full of fresh ideas. Black Majesty surely doesn’t come up with anything new, but just puts the power back into the Reich. Great songs like “Fall Of The Reich”, “Guardian” and “Journeys End” show the talent of this band. Great melodies, bombastic interludes and plenty of variety.

Melodic metal like this stands or falls with the quality of the vocals. It’s that simple. And that’s where John Cavaliere steps in. This man has a tremendous voice with ample of reach and an overdose of power. Although not quite as clean as Geoff Tate for instance, his power and uniqueness make up for that. John simply raises this album to a higher level.

Usually I do not adhere to the words of the biography that comes along with a promo, this time however I have to agree it is 100% correct when it states: ‘already respected as one of Australia’s best metal vocalists’. He must be, without a doubt.

The production of this album is pretty old school too. It’s not the clean, clinical and powerful production of the average nowadays metal production. It’s rather ‘hollow’ sounding with the vocals pushed far into the front. And what the heck, after hearing one after the other clinical release, Sands Of Time just sounds great, although I do realize it is a matter of taste. I have only one point of criticism and that’s the short instrumental “Destination”. Don’t get me wrong it’s a great track but the main riff sounds dangerously familiar (Moonspell’s “Full Moon Madness” to be precise).

This is simply a great album for anyone who loves old school melodic heavy metal, to get those nostalgic feelings flowing once again. I wish there were more bands like Black Majesty, bands who are not afraid to step back in time and play the music that was once popular. It’s better to use a good recipe then to come up with a terrible new one!