FRASER EDWARDS – The Architect

Listening to the new album from Fraser Edwards aptly called The Architect brings to mind 2 words: technical perfection. The album is loaded with hyper fast, melodic rides on roller coasters of baroque melodies. With Fraser Edwards being the architect/guitarist, he leads a band of merry men including the excellent musicians Andrew Scott (King King, Paul Gilbert) on drums, Ricki Carnie (Ascension, Sharky Sharky) on vocals, Graeme McDonald (Rise with Honour) on vocals, Sergey Boykov (Vital Science) on keyboards and Dick Gilchrist (Ascension, Barque of Dante) on drums.

Dragon Force?

The new album has a healthy 12 songs and comes in at just over 48 minutes of well crafted Power Metal.  If you didn’t already make a comparison to Dragonforce, then Fraser Edwards has made sure for us with his super witty songs “Stop Saying We Sound Like Dragonforce” and “Crouching Comrades, Hidden Dragonforce”. And the answer is a big yes, the song could easily have been a Dragonforce song. The melodies are super catchy, and the performances by all are as stated earlier, technically perfect. Fraser Edwards’ use of melody in his guitar style has that speedy, happy anthemic power that ties the two bands together in a good way. Fraser has a mastery of the electric guitar like few others on a short list, reminding me of the 80s when I first heard Tony MacAlpine playing super technically played classically based metal guitar.

Sense of Humor

Fraser Edwards definitely has a good sense of humor, and it really shines on songs like “Stop Saying We Sound Like Dragonforce” and one of my favorites “The Death Zone”. The latter song has such a serious theme but is so happy and uplifting it’s a perfect contrast, which tends to make me smile. The songs are all very witty, and showcase the ability to mesh a variety of different musical styles into a great collection of Power Metal songs. Other personal favorites for this reviewer include the instrumentals “The Architect” and “Sorrow Of The Loneliest Dragon”, and their cover of the Elton John classic “Your Song”.

Final Notes

The production is truly impressive, and the finished product is a great example of what a really talented independent producer can accomplish. If you like incredibly fast guitar work played to perfection, the mixture of baroque melodies with funk, classical and speed metal, then you should add this great record to your collection.

Lineup

Fraser Edwards – guitars

Special guests
Andrew Scott (King King, Paul Gilbert) on drums
Ricki Carnie (Ascension, Sharky Sharky) on vocals
Graeme McDonald (Rise with Honour) on vocals
Sergey Boykov (Vital Science) on keyboards
Dick Gilchrist (Ascension, Barque of Dante) on drums.

Tracklist – The Architect

01. The Architect
02. Stop Saying We Sound Like Dragonforce
03. Warzone
04. The Death Zone
05. Ruination
06. Dio Volendo Lo Faro
07. Among The Stars
08. This World Can Be Ours
09. Sorrow Of The Loneliest Dragon
10. Crouching Comrades, Hidden Dragonforce
11. On My Own (Bonus Track)
12. Your Song (Bonus Track)