AFFECTOR — Harmagedon (review)

AFFECTOR — Harmagedon album cover Album · 2012 · Progressive Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
J-Man
Affector is a multi-national progressive metal act featuring members of Symphony X, Neal Morse Band, Enchant, and Dilemma, and Harmagedon is their debut full-length observation. Playing in the style of Dream Theater, the album consists of high-class musicianship, technical acrobatics, and most everything else you'd expect from a traditional progressive metal release. Affector hardly brings anything new to the table with Harmagedon, but the album has enough high points to excuse some of its shortcomings.

Harmagedon is a concept album that talks about a Biblical apocalypse - Affector does not hide the fact that they are a Christian band, and although the end times can make for a cool metal concept, the lyrics here are trite and lack any form of subtlety. It's challenging for a nonbeliever to listen to this album without quickly growing bored by the proselytizing lyrics, but (fortunately) the musical aspect is much better. Though you won't find anything terribly original on Harmagedon, there are plenty of killer riffs, melodic solos, and frantic instrumental runs to satisfy any prog metal fan. Drummer Colin Leijenaar especially impresses me with his complex and intricate playing. Guest keyboard appearances from Neal Morse, Jordan Rudess, Alex Argento, and Derek Sherinian are also likely to grab the attention of prog metal fans, and all deliver solid solos that add to the instrumental credibility of the album. If I had to make one complaint about the musical aspect of Harmagedon, it would be that the vocal melodies seem rather weak compared to the instrumental segments. There are some very memorable vocal lines, like the chorus in "Salvation" or "Cry Song", but generally they seem rather bland, and this issue can be compounded by the awkward lyrics.

It may seem like I'm coming down hard on Harmagedon, but I do actually enjoy this album. Instrumentally, Harmagedon is excellent, and if Affector spent more time writing clever lyrics and strong vocal melodies, they could've really hit a home run with this debut. The result is an album with untapped potential, but still enjoyable enough to warrant a recommendation to progressive metal fans.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

… And the Universe Keeps Silent Death Metal
MAERE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Le bannissement Atmospheric Black Metal
CANTIQUE LÉPREUX
Buy this album from MMA partners
Tarantula Heart Sludge Metal
MELVINS
Buy this album from MMA partners
God Damned You To Hell Traditional Doom Metal
FRIENDS OF HELL
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Absence Melodic Death Metal
THE ABSENCE
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Fallen Ashes - Wage War (Official Lyric Video)
FALLEN ASHES
Bosh66· 8 days ago
EXISTENTIAL DEAD - Unreality (Single) 2024
EXISTENTIAL DEAD
Bosh66· 9 days ago
EXISTENTIAL DEAD - Cold Hands
EXISTENTIAL DEAD
Bosh66· 9 days ago
IRON MONKEY - Misanthropizer (Official Music Video)
IRON MONKEY
Bosh66· 11 days ago
??? (Losing ART) - "????" (Official Music Video) [HD]
漂浮者樂團
Bosh66· 12 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed