Valley's Eve - Deception Of Pain

Year of Release: 2002
Label: Limb Music Products
Catalog Number: LMP 0202-039 CD
Format: CD
Total Time: 64:49:00

It would be fair to say I wasn't completely enamoured with Valley's Eve's previous disc The Atmosphere Of Silence. Their mix of power metal with progressive leanings (or vice versa) didn't gel the way it could have. With a new contract, Valley's Eve proffer their third release which continues the mix of styles.

The two main members of Valley's Eve are still R. D. Liapakis (v) and Martin Albrecht (b) and they have significantly tightened up their sound from their previous loose album, which suffered under a lame production and disjointed songs. Thankfully, this has been rectified on this album. Deception Of Pain has a similar musical theme running throughout the album and towering vocalist Liapakis repeats the same vocal melodies through each song. But this isn't such a bad thing because he has a really good voice that is a cross between Blaze Bayley (Blaze) and Dirk Thurisch (Angel Dust) with lots of melody when those lungs expand. Not only does he soar but he has a rough, aggressive side that really adds spark to the album.

Most of the songs have a very similar vibe about them and this is mainly due to the vocals of Liapakis. Musically, the songs are fairly generic in their structure but, and all credit to the band, the songs are not repetitive but each song is still as familiar as the last. At least, it's not repetitive after the few listens I've already had. A few softer moments (but not soft songs) mix the album up with "Mirror In Your Eyes" and "Dark Room" but in general it's mid- to up-tempo rockers with driving power metal riffs. Songs like "Unholy Power," "Point Of No Return," and "Kingdom Of Pain" inject minor non-standard metal elements into the mix, but most times it is outright straight heavy, groove-oriented power metal. The band have a strong rhythm section that doesn't stagnate nor delve into straight double bass kicks (drummer Frank Huber). The album, featuring guitarist Frank Pane, is very guitar heavy, creating rhythmic movements in a way that Mezarkabul did on their Unspoken album.

The production, by Liapakis, is a lot cleaner and the instruments more balanced, which means those who liked The Atmosphere Of Silence should greatly enjoy Deception Of Pain. As clich?d as it may sound, this new album is bigger and better.

Similar To: Mezarkabul, Mystic Prophecy, Radakka

[This review originally appeared November 2002 at the ProgPower Online review site -ed.]

Tracklisting:
The Fire Burns (4:41) / Point Of No Return (4:42) / The Sun (5:32) / In Your Head (4:13) / Mirror In Your Eyes (4:29) / Kingdom Of Pain (5:13) / Dark Room (4:32) / Creating Gods (5:19) / Falling (5:42) / Open The Gates (4:43) / Dark Shadows On The Wall (7:21) / Unholy Power (5:17) / Bonus Track: Shadows Of Misery (5:05)

Musicians:
R.D. Liapakis - vocals
Frank Pane - guitars
Frank Huber - drums
Martin Albrecht - bass

Discography:
Prodgia (1998)
The Atmosphere Of Silence (1999)
Deception Of Pain (2002)

Genre: Progressive-Power Metal

Origin DE

Added: March 29th 2005
Reviewer: Gary Carson
Score:
Artist website: www.valleyseve.de
Hits: 2726
Language: english