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Album Review: Darker Half - Never Surrender

Brendan Crabb
StarStarStarHalf Star

"Darker Half are beginning to realise their sizeable potential."

If Queensrÿche's latest didn't quite afford you a satisfying melodic metal fill, this Sydney mob's new LP may just. Upping their game with each release, this third full–length signals the quartet's power/trad/thrash receiving another nudge forward, the songwriting more cohesive while harnessing their raw, youthful exuberance. As Darkness Fades and Lost In Space flirt more vigorously with prog, offset by re-energised versions of a few previously released live favourites. Influences (early 'Rÿche, Maiden, Mercyful Fate; fluid, fleet-fingered leads drawing from Rust In Peace-era Megadeth) remain detectable, but Darker Half are beginning to realise their sizeable potential.