Light Bringer - Tales of Almanac (2009)^{Release ID: 12259}

You have to admire the balls of a band to straight up just go for what kind of music they're going to go, no build-up of any possible confusion. Deep breath, then out comes the J-pop-esque singress of which I'm sure many reviews would describe as nails on a blackboard and full power metal sound. Sort of Nightwish, but with the keyboardist as the unquestionably second most important part of the sound.
It honestly should be something I hate, because this kind of saccharine power metal isn't my speed. Maybe it's the combination of overtly cutsy vocals and happy nostalgic, ethereal synths that work where a normal combo wouldn't. At least that's how I interpret it. I've heard some synth lines used here that I suspect it's some kind of Japanese folk song that landed outside of the Land of the Rising Sun with all the meaningful impact of a jelly donut.
The drums sound quite strange, not in a good way. For some reason it sounds like a real drum kit somehow altered to sound like something out of an Adlib sound card. It doesn't always sound like that. and there is an actual drummer here, but I just have to wonder if the keyboard player didn't do some of these. A lot of the synths sound straight off a PSX, which is funny because I'm pretty sure that's a real piano.
Which does get away from how the band is pretty good at constructing a song. There are bands who wish they could do as much in one album that these guys do in one song. Just not necessarily in a metal way, singer guitarist and keyboardist in perfect harmony.
If I were to nitpick, Rain, which is a genuinely nice song except for the parts she's trying to be Tarja Turunen. She's genuinely trying, but she just can't do it right. Far too high for her voice. There are also a lot of songs with weird-sounding backing singers. It's a bit too varied at times practically half the songs are some kind of ballad.
Unlike the band's hairstyles, Tales of Almanac is and timeless and unique piece of power metal, and well worth a listen.