Album Review: Horizons Edge - Heavenly Realms

On their second album, Melbourne's Horizons Edge have drawn inspiration from the uplifting, big-chorus power metal of Keeper...-era Helloween and early Yngwie Malmsteen, updating the formula and submerging it in a polished, sweeping sci-fi setting.

Kat Sproule's razor-sharp vocals entwine with endless neo-classical guitar licks, atmospheric synths and a blasting rhythm section, made all the more potent by a crisp, bombastic production job. Maybe a few minutes could have been trimmed off tracks Empire and Life After Death, but — at the end of the day — if you like power metal, you'll like Horizons Edge. It's that simple.