DragonForce worhsip with highs and lows - A review of Perennial Quest's Warriors Through Endless Time

Perennial Quest is a power metal band from Boston that is clearly influenced by European bands and most obviously by DragonForce and its first four studio albums. Seven musicians were involved in the release of this ambitious demo that includes six songs with a running time of forty-six minutes.

Since DragonForce has been moving away from its origins throughout the last decade, it's actually great to hear a young and hungry band picking up that particular style that hasn't lost any of its original charm in my book. Perennial Quest has plenty of talent and potential. The three guitarists involved here play fast, melodic and technical riffs and solos that certainly stand out. The rhythm section is steady but could be a little bit more adventurous, especially the bass guitar that is at times buried in the production. The keyboards offer some decent atmospheric passages but could also take some more space. The melodic vocals sound decent and fit with this style but are overall lacking charisma and identity. The bottom line is that Perennial Quest's Warriors Through Endless Time is mostly of interest for fans of dynamic power metal guitar wizardry.

The best song on the album is closing epic ''Cast into Shadow'' that offers a fluid mixture of fast-paced elements and slow and atmospheric passages. This is also the only song that could be described as progressive power metal since there are different changes, ideas and storytelling elements interwoven in strong song writing. The other tunes rather sound like overlong power metal songs that could have been shortened by a minute or two.

On the positive side, the musicianship of these youngsters is astonishing and especially the vibrant, technical and diversified guitar play needs to be pointed out once more. The band plays with lots of passion which is audible in every single second of this promising demo. The group has already found its very own style which is impressive for a first release.

On the negative side, the song writing could be more focused at times. The mediocre production doesn't do the very good music justice as especially the rhythm section is lacking some punch. The cover artwork looks rather amateurish as well and might prevent some people from discovering a very talented, self-confident and promising band.

At the end of the day, fans of fast-paced European power metal in the key of early DragonForce should certainly give Perennial Quest's Warriors Through Endless Time a chance and keep this band on their radar for future endeavors.

Final rating: 75%