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Cellador: Off The Grid

Power/Speed Metal

3.0/5.0

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Scarlet Records
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 22.02.2017

How long does it take to create your second full-length album? Apparently, for Colorado's Cellador, it takes more than ten years since their successful Enter Deception. But they've had some personnel changes along the way, which always makes for a rougher road. Founding member, vocalist, and guitarist Chris Petersen remains at the helm and the driving force behind Cellador.

Cellador

In review, Off The Grid can be reduced to a few simple observations. First, this is lightning fast, high octane, power metal. Straight from the gate the pace is Dragonforce quick and unrelenting to the end. Second, the core of the arrangements and the Cellador sound is about nearly infinite, sharp to harsh, twin guitar riffage, yet wrapped in some melody, and then followed by oodles of solos. The riffage is largely crushing, demolishing both the vocals and "alleged" keyboards. Frankly I don't think their are any synths here, because keyboard player Diego Valadez has been stabbed repeatedly by the piercing riffage. He's bleeding out somewhere in the studio. What comes through after the guitars is the pummeling and raging drums from the rhythm section, but not the bass line, though I'm sure it's there.

Finally, all these things combine to produce one thing, actually a choice of one thing out of two: consistency or redundancy. Believing more the latter, all these elements rolled together produce an album that sounds the same from beginning to end with little to no variation to create intrigue. Once you hear the first song, you know what you're going to get through the whole album. Where's the mystery in that? There isn't. If anything, Off The Grid displays the natural bombastic extravagance of Cellador's American power metal.

Cellador - Shadowfold

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.

If anything, Off The Grid displays the natural bombastic extravagance of Cellador's American power metal.

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Now entering their second decade in music biz, Sweden's Wildness returns with latest and fourth studio album, Avenger. Band personnel has remained consistent for the last four years with the addition of Erik ... [ Read More ]