DIVINEFIRE – Into A New Dimension

Divinefire was formed in 2004 by Finnish composer and drummer, Jani Stefanovic (Am I Blood, Sins Of Omission, Renascent), and vocalist Christian Rivel (Narnia). They later added bass player Andreas Olsson (Narnia, Rob Rock, Stormwind) and thus completed what they call the holy trinity of Divinefire.

They have released two albums so far (Glory Thy Name in 2004 and Hero in 2005) and Into A New Dimension is their third album in the same number of years. Divinefire have been very productive during their short existence and they have recorded some good music so far. This album is more Extreme and more Symphonic than their previous releases.

Divinefire is something as rare as a Christian Power Metal band. All the lyrics deal with their Christian beliefs, and though there’s no doubt that they mean every word of it, the lyrics are really cheesy. On this album, you can hear lines like: “… with Holy Ghost power we rock …”

“Vision of the New Dawn” is the obligatory intro to the album. It’s heavy and has some Symphonic/Opera elements to it. “Passion & Fire” is heavy, massive, and fast. It’s also got some Symphonic touches to it, and reveals some good vocal abilities from Christian Rivel. Carl Johan Grimmark (Narnia) plays the guitar solo on this song, and he does his part ok, but nothing more. All in all, this is a cool song.

“Time’s Running Out” is just as fast as the previous and is set off with a heavy growl. The Symphonic parts of this song are mind-thrilling, and along with Rivel’s perfectly fitting vocals, this is definitely the highpoint of the album.

The title track is in the same spirit as the rest of the songs, but it varies just enough to make it interesting. Also on this one, the Symphonic parts are amazingly cool. “Facing The Liar,” “Live Or Die,” “Alive,” and “All For One” are cool extreme Power Metal songs, but doesn’t stand out in any particular way like the other songs mentioned.

“The Final Victory” has more of the growls from Stefanovic than the previous songs, and gives the song a more extreme sound. “The Last Encore” is the outro for the album. It consists mainly of Symphonic parts and choirs with drums building a great foundation. The bonus track “Free Like An Eagle” is a great melodic Power Metal version of the classic AOR song by Talk Of The Town. This is a nice treat for the European and USA buyers.

The production on this album is great. They have captured the depth of the Symphonic parts just right and it’s a thrill to listen to this recording. No parts vanish in the mix either, and the vocal arrangements are amazing. Though they have hired three excellent lead guitarists to play the solos on this album, the solos are incredibly short (10 seconds per song or so …), and they are mainly playing an arpeggio scale or two, sometimes not even that … this part drags the album down a bit, but Into A New Dimension is still a good album and Christian Heavy/Power Metal fans will surely embrace this release.

If you aren’t into this kind of music, you should give this album a chance anyway. The extremity and the massive Melodic Symphonic aspects of this album are amazing and it’s worth a shot to try it out.

Divinefire are

• Christian Rivel – Lead & Backing Vocals
• Jani Stefanovic – Drums, Guitars, Growls, Keyboards & Programming
• Andreas Olsson – Bass

Guest musicians

• Barry Haldan – Growls
• Thomas Vikström – Backing Vocals
• Carl Johan Grimmark – Lead Guitar
• Patrik Gardberg – Lead Guitar
• Pontus Norgren – Lead Guitar

Tracklist

1. Vision of the New Dawn
2. Passion & Fire
3. Time’s Running Out
4. Into A New Dimension
5. Facing The Liar
6. Live Or Die
7. Alive
8. All For One
9. The Final Victory
10. The Last Encore
11. Free Like An Eagle