VOLTAX – No Retreat… You Surrender

No Retreat … You Surrender is the fourth studio record from the Mexican Metal band Voltax.  Best described as Symphonic Metal, the vocal range of Gerardo “Jerry” Mauleon at times calls to mind the great Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden, and even  occasionally stretches into the realms of legendary Steelheart vocalist Miljenko Matijevic.  However, his performance on this record is spotty, with many of the backing vocals and even some of the sustained notes venturing out of pitch.  Its subtle, but just enough to induce the occasional cringe.  The twin guitars of Diego Magdaleno Machuca and Ricardo Doval Caballero provide a solid songwriting background, but the lead guitar is not up to par with many bands of the same genre, and the overall production quality is lacking in clarity and punch.

Solid performances by members Hector Vera Rodriguez – Bass and Mario Melendez Sandoval – Drums round out No Retreat … You Surrender, but overall the record falls short.  Numerous timing, tuning, and pitch issues throughout leave the listener feeling that something just isn’t quite right in several of the songs.  Two of the tracks, “El Fin” and “Night Lasts Forever”, are musical interludes of about a minute in length that probably should have been intros to songs, or left out entirely.  The record also includes one cover, Chicago’s “25 0r 6 To 4” that does the original little justice, and is probably the poorest offering of the record.  Fans of Epic Metal and Symphonic Metal may find something to enjoy, but if you come expecting Dragonforce or Symphony X, you will leave disappointed.

TUNE INTO METALEXPRESSRADIO.COM at NOON & MIDNIGHT (EST) / 6:00 & 18:00 (CET) TO HEAR THE BEST TRACKS FROM THIS UPCOMING RELEASE!!!