Plague-House Puppet Show / Twilightning (2004)

1. Plague-House Puppet Show

2. Into Treason

3. The Fiend

4. Victim Of Deceit

5. Painting The Blue Eyes

6. In The Fervor's Frontier

7. Fever Pitch

8. Diamonds Of Mankind

9. Riot Race

10. Lubricious Thoughts

11. Goddess Of Fortune

12. Wind-Up Toy

The first album was a great discovery for me. I was looking forward to their second album. They did not disappoint my expectation. The thing that I really liked about the last album was the arrangement of the song. It had a lot of rhythm change and modulation and sounded progressive but not complicated. The differences from the last album are that sound became more pop, and their influence from 80's music became more obvious. Some people took that change negatively. Nevertheless, I am really pleased with the sound. They were already an unique band in this genre, melodic power metal. I think they really established their style, and this album really represents the music they wanted to do.

Amazing thing about this band is the number of riffs that they came up with and dense quality of each of them. Keyboard brings good sound of 80's back to this album. Their composition also kept high quality this time. Especially, track 8 is astonishing. It has dramatic progression in the song. I think this song is condensed with their composition skill and musicianship. Too bad this band no longer exists. Even just for a short-term, I want them to reunite. 

☆☆☆☆

The System Has Failed / Megadeth (2004)

1. Blackmail the Universe

2. Die Dead Enough

3. Kick the Chair

4. The Scorpion

5. Tears in a Vial

6. I Know Jack

7. Back in the Day

8. Something That I'm Not

9. Truth Be Told

10. Of Mice and Men

11. Shadow of Deth

12. My Kingdom

Since Dave Mustaine came back to the scene, he has never failed to meet expectation as Megadeth release their albums. It all started from this album, "The system has failed". When I heard that Dave left the metal scene due to his injury, that was truly devastating. When I heard his return, I was so excited and really looking forward to their new album. And then, this album came out. 

To be honest, I did not have strong impression when I listened to the album for the first time. I always considered Dave as the riff master, and I felt that there was not enough aggression and hook in riffs. However, as I listened to the album more, I realized that I was wrong. I think this album is the most melodious album of all time in their career. Songs such as "Die Dead Enough", "The Scorpion", and "Tears In Vial" has such beautiful minor melody lines. 

Riffs are very cool and show how Dave Mustaine is still the riff master. First, as I mentioned above, I did not have strong impression on riffs, but then I realized that riffs in this album were very melodious as well. Songs such as "Blackmail The Universe", "Kick The Chair", and "Back In The Day" show that Dave has not lost aggression and edge even though he is no longer an angry man he used to be. I have to say Dave Mustaine is one of few song writers that is from 80's who still make songs that are equivalent or perhaps better than some of his classic catalogs. 

☆☆☆☆

Sonic Firestorm / DragonForce (2004)

1. My Spirit Will Go On

2. Fury of the Storm

3. Fields of Despair

4. Dawn Over a New World

5. Above the Winter Moonlight

6. Soldiers of the Wastelands

7. Prepare for War

8. Once In A Lifetime

9. Cry of the Brave

The debut album was very sensational yet also rough and unrefined ore. With this album, they basically continued the same music direction. As they did with the last album, they still stuck with speed except the ballad track 4. However, there was a lot of improvement in this album. First, the sound production was much improved from the last album. Second, the song arrangements and melody lines were better deliberated. Some of the songs in the last album sounded redundant, but the songs in this album is well arranged.

I listened to this album at CD store. From the beginning of track 1, the dramatic metal journey had begun. DragonForce world goes quick with speed. My personal highlights are tracks 1 and 6. They still shows strong obsession to speed, yet they also brought more variety in rhythm and riffs. Because of that new attempt with arrangement, it makes the fast parts stand out even more. Melody lines have better hook, and each song became more distinguishable from other songs. This album was a big step-up for the band and made me looking forward to the next one.

☆☆☆☆

Unbreakable / Scorpions (2004)

1. New Generation

2. Love 'em Or Leave 'em

3. Deep And Dark

4. Borderline

5. Blood Too Hot

6. Maybe I Maybe You

7. Someday Is Now

8. My City My Town

9. Through My Eyes

10. Can You Feel It

11. This Time

12. She Said

13. Remember The Good Times

14. Dreamers (Japanese Release Only)

15. Too Far (Japanese Release Only)

This is my all-time favorite Scorpions album. It strongly reminds me of their '70s era, and for some reason, the songs really hit me emotionally.

Sound-wise, the album is heavy and dark, yet the melodies recall the Uli Jon Roth era. At the same time, it blends that classic vibe with modern production, catchy hard rock elements, and the power ballads that made them famous in the '80s.

Back in the '70s, the Scorpions weren't big in the U.S. yet, but they were already quite popular in Europe and Japan. I believe the reason they resonated so much in Japan back then was their beautiful minor-key melodies. Their songs weren't overly commercial yet, but they had a distinct atmosphere that perfectly matched Japanese musical sensibilities. It wasn't as pop-oriented as their '80s work, but it captivated Japanese fans. This album captures that exact same magic.

At first, I was really surprised by the sound. It was extremely heavy! Some songs are down-tuned to C. Perhaps this album and Humanity: Hour I are the heaviest albums in their catalogue, but it really matches the musical direction they were heading in at the time.

Tracks like "New Generation", "Love 'em Or Leave 'em", "Deep and Dark", "Maybe I Maybe You", and "Through My Eyes" all have a great '70s vibe. I’d call "Maybe I Maybe You" a 21st-century version of "Holiday." Of course, the album also features fantastic ballads like "She Said" and "Dreamer". "Dreamer" is only a bonus track on the Japanese edition, but it instantly became one of my favorite Scorpions songs. It's truly one of the best pieces they've ever written, and I honestly don't understand why it wasn't included in the worldwide release. It also features more upbeat songs like "Blood Too Hot", "Someday Is Now", "My City My Town", and "Remember The Good Times", which will surely please '80s fans.

They continued this musical direction on their next album, but shifted back to a more pop-oriented hard rock sound with Sting in the Tail. To me, this album represents the best of both worlds ('70s Scorpions & '80s Scorpions).

☆☆☆☆☆

The Burning / Thunderstone (2004)

1. Until We Touch The Burning Sun

2. Break The Emotions

3. Mirror Never Lies

4. The Star Man

5. Spire

6. Sea Of Sorrow

7. Side By Side

8. Drawn To The Flame

9. Forth into The Black

10. Evil Within

Their last album had good metal songs yet bashed as a copy of Stratovarius by some critics. I don't know if they heard that or not, but this album was a big step up! The surprise started from track 1. They brought a mid-tempo song at the beginning. The song is very progressive and arranged well. It was a happy surprise for me. Track 2 is a typical Stratovarius type speed metal song. There are some more of the same kind of speed metal songs. However, the highlights of the album are track 1 and 9. They are very progressive and dramatic. In this respect, it is little similar to Masterplan.

This musical direction was even extended in next album, and the band started getting out of typical speed/power metal music.

☆☆☆☆