BATTLE BEAST – Steel

“Enter the Metal world of doom” proclaims vocalist Nitte Valo during the fiery opening track from this Classic Metal style album. Battle Beast is a Traditional Metal band hailing from Finland, and they possess a solid core ’80s sound complete with high-pitched screams, melodic choruses, and screeching guitar solos. Steel is the band’s debut album, originally released independently in April of 2011, and it’s now being released internationally on a major label.

Battle Beast is led by a very powerful female singer in Nitte Valo. She delivers a very unique and intense form of vocals. Her voice is reminiscent of legendary vocalists Michael Sweet of Stryper or Steelheart’s Michael Matijevic. She portrays an incredibly commanding and authoritative essence throughout each track. She also delivers the songs with a great amount of enthusiasm.

There is one ballad on the album titled “Savage And Saint” where Valo is able to spawn her softer side, and prove that she can pull off a more dynamic performance. This song is performed in the same fashion as some of the great Glam Metal ballads of the ’80s, but with an increased level of urgency due to the grand compassion Valo portrays during the entire track.

Another great facet of the Battle Beast formula is the outstanding guitar riffs and solos from Anton Kabanen and Jusso Soinio. The riffs are generally raucous, fast, and loud. It is very comparable to the Tipton / Downing Judas Priest team. So much so there are hints of “Freewheel Burning” and “Painkiller” style riffs throughout the album. The fast and furious solos are amazing as well, and quite noteworthy.

The one ingredient that just doesn’t seem to fit in the Battle Beast recipe is the overuse of keyboards to define their melodies. The keyboard synthesized sound is very ubiquitous on every track, and frankly not needed at all. The outstanding guitar riffs carry more than enough weight to make these compositions complete and successful. The addition of the keyboard is simply too much, and takes away from the “rawness” of the Metal which appears to be intended. This approach is especially prevalent during the track “The Band Of The Hawk” — a great epic composition — but because the band uses a synthesized melody approach, it comes off sounding more like “The Final Countdown” by Europe.

Overall, Battle Beast has some great qualities that make them a fun and exciting band to listen. The compositions are well written, the musicianship is of fine quality, and the production is clean. There is a dated sound carrying shades and visions Glam Metal, which may frustrate some listeners. Additionally, the overuse of synthesizers just makes this release somewhat tiring after a few spins.