Katana - Storms of War

For starters, I just want to say that I absolutely 100% love traditional metal: Iron Maiden is my all-time favorite band and I love Judas Priest. As a result I'm a sucker for stuff like "Storms of War". I've never heard Katana prior to this album, but after hearing this album I will be seeking out their debut album as soon as possible.

How can I describe Katana? Singer Johan Bernspang is this generation's Bruce Dickinson and the rest of the band pull off the gallop of Maiden convincingly.
Some will deride the band for their obvious homage, others such as myself will be enthralled. These guys aren't just Maiden copycats though, instead they have taken that band's classic 80s sound and modernized it a bit and come up with a classic album in their own right.

Anyone who's ever been into metal will take a listen to this album and have a huge grin on their face for the duration. The band has the hooks, they have the looks and they have the overall image to rise to the top of the metal heap. Just listen to songs like "Khubilai Kahn" or "Wrath of the Emerald Witch" and try to say you're not impressed with a straight face.

The thing about Iron Maiden that's always put them near and dear to my heart is the way they are able to make metal sound majestic and impressive, and up until now, no band has ever been able to come close to them. Well, Katana comes extremely close. This is one impressive album and I see great things in the future for these guys (and gal). (9/10) 

Curt 

Band info: www.facebook.com/KatanaOfficial 

Label info: www.listenable.net