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QUANTUM TWILIGHT
Hypersonic Demolition

Self-released (2022)
Rating: 5/10

This kind of stuff often gets called power metal, but I get that meaty, powerhouse vibe from it like I would from the bands I loved years ago.

Hypersonic Demolition is a debut offering from this Washington D.C. act that has one foot in the theatrical and another in the rather cheesy. Maybe it’s the Disney gallop of ‘Never Surrender’ where one could imagine a cartoon cast with hands aloft singing this track to the heavens with a nod to Dragonforce. I take my hat off to the excellent soloing, but in general the vocals grate and that chorus just has me reaching for the sick bucket. However, those seeking streamlined metal rooted in sci-fi fascination need look no further than the cosmic creation here.

‘Champions’ continues the Disney theme I’m afraid. I dunno, maybe it’s just the vocals because everything rattles along effectively, especially the bass, but lyrically it’s almost childishly positive and naïve, and when Jarrad Biron Green whispers “In a land of snow and ice” after a surging axe introduction I just want to fill my ears with boiling oil to stop the pain. But I guess this sort of melodic metal is an acquired taste, because it has that overtly Euro-frost feel and maintains a joyously glossy façade throughout.

‘Intergalactic Onslaught’ speaking of how a “hero will arise” reminds of what would happen if terrible television shows such as The X-Factor came up with a “rock idol” premise, knowing full well that teenage girls would lap this up.

The other issue I have as well is that Jarred, although young, just doesn’t seem powerful enough for the musical wall built around him. Maybe that’s why when I hear him croon “A crack of lightning” on ‘Beyond The Walls’ or speed Helloween-style on closer ‘Game Over’ I just cannot bear it any longer. In a sense, his purity is distracting while all around Greg Russell pulls the strings on what appear to be programmed drums, but the axe work is impressive and fluid, although the bass is a just a tad too intrusive in its gallops.

I do, however, have a feeling that in the right hands Quantum Twilight could mature into a major player, especially in Europe, because this has that cold, synthetic vibe at times. But for now, the vocals just don’t do it for me and so Hypsersonic Demolition for all its cosmically enriched vapours is coated all too heavily in interstellar cheese.

Neil Arnold

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