Metally.net Music Store - Ultra Beatdown
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List Price: $18.98
Our Price: $9.24
Your Save: $ 9.74 ( 51% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Roadrunner Records
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0016861793722
Label: Roadrunner Records
Manufacturer: Roadrunner Records
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: Roadrunner Records
Release Date: 2008-08-26
Studio: Roadrunner Records
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: An ultra beatdown all over your face.
Comment: To be honest I was never really a fan of Power Metal, more of a thrashy, tech-death/progressive type guy. But I got this with a free ticket to their upcoming show so I figured what the heck...so I've never really been into Dragonforce but this album blew me off my chair. I can admire this band for being more down to earth than some of the more overly sophisticated bands like Dream Theater. They don't try to be anything more than a bunch of guys who like to blast away some fast and loud face-smacking music. This is what I feel metal is really about, just letting loose and having a good time.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Same Stuff
Comment: This album is just the same old Dragonforce stuff. Same speed, same melodies, and the same guitar solos. Guitar solos were impressive once until you listen to all of their guitar solo sections - the same guitar solos over and over again. Blast beat drumming is even predictable. Dragonforce is and has always been a terrible copy of the true stars of speed-power metal which is Helloween. This album sounded like B-sides from "Inhuman Rampage" which is...the same material. This isn't even a new album.
Customer Rating:
Summary: It's Dragonforce...what else do you want?
Comment: It seems like Dragonforce has gained a larger fanbase since "Through the Fire and the Flames" was put on Guitar Hero III, but it brought about a large group of people who hate them as well. Well, I've been a Dragonforce fan for years and I really enjoyed this album.
Lyrically, the album is exactly the same as their old ones; I think ZP Theart throws the same 50 words or so into a hat and then picks them out in a different order for each song- I've heard the phrases "endless silence," "blackened sky," "last horizon," come out of his mouth countless times in many songs, and honestly, I haven't gotten sick of it. Don't expect them to veer too much from their D&D style lyrics; it's not going to happen.
As for the music, I feel like they switched it up on this album a little bit. Sure, there are your crazy, fast solos that we have come to love from Herman Li and Sam Totem, but I really enjoyed some of the slower solos they added in, especially on "Reasons to Live." It was surprising to hear them at first, but it just shows some versitility that they may have been lacking in the past. Also, I just wanted to add that the drummer Dave Mackintosh is an insane drummer who I think doesn't get the credit he deserves because of everyone's obession with crazy guitar solos. The man is a human drum machine.
It might be because I love video games or something, but their music brings me back to the days of playing Mega Man II on NES, and I think that's why I can't get enough of them. If you are expecting some miraculous change where Dragonforce is going to completely change their style from previous albums, then this album is definately not for you. If you enjoy listening to Dragonforce no matter how repetetive they may be, then pick up this album, you won't regret it.
-Scott
Customer Rating:
Summary: Terrible efford
Comment: I dont have much to say here, i give the album more then 10 spins and all i can say the band have peaked during inhuman rampage album and the song writting here offer nothing fresh, in fact the songs quality are terrible, the first song even had a singing part that sounds the same like through the fire and flames, the ballad on this album is no doubt one of the worst song they ever did, it really shows how hard they really try just to make one song. Valley of the damned and inhuman are great albums and i still like it alot but this one just doesnt cut it. It failed from start to finish, no memorable singing, riff, guitar solo, no nothing.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Could've Been Worse
Comment: Dragonforce is a weird one. They always have been. But just as well, the mindset of many is "the faster/heavier the better" which is, to many, the ultimate downfall of the power metal genre. That said, these guys really can't hold a candle to bands like Sonata Arctica in terms of actual technical skill that backs the sound.
I still have not heard their debut, but I began with Inhuman Rampage. Through the Fire and Flames was a wicked single. I don't think there's doubt in anyone's mind over that. But it got old fast, and with few other songs to back it (Operation Ground and Pound was good) the album really wasn't all it was cracked up to be. It was simply pure speed, and that really is not always a good thing. Then I listened to Sonic Firestorm. That is a good album even for those who may not normally enter the realm of Power Metal. Many standouts were included with their rich almost anthemic sort of sound to them.
So what about Ultra Beatdown? Months ago, I heard their new single, Heroes of Our Time when it was put up on their MySpace profile. Initially, it sounded a lot like the same old, same old, but then came in some interesting sound and technical skill, which really surprised me. I especially love the ending of the song. It's just one of those things that you can't help but let hook you.
Many other notables are here as well, like Sonic Firestorm. The Fire Still Burns and The Last Journey Home are great tracks you will find yourself listening to over and over again.
All in all, if you like any Dragonforce, this album won't disappoint. It's power metal with cheesy lyrics abound, but its still a very, VERY solid release, especially when compared to the poor offering that Inhuman Rampage was.
Also, as a side-note, I think that using the inclusion of Through the Fire and Flames in Guitar Hero to promote the album was a good marketing tactic, however, I think it's overhyped and a bit of a low blow. In that sense, I can already see the large amounts of cries of "Sell-Outs!"
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Editorial Reviews:
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On the way to selling over 300,000 albums and spawning a gold digital
single, DragonForce went from being one of metal s fastest bands to
a cultural phenomenon thanks to constant touring and a little game
called Guitar Hero. The song Through The Fire And Flames was
included in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and helped spread the
name and music of the band. Now, the band is back to deliver an
Ultra Beatdown to the unsuspecting public. This album takes off where
Inhuman Rampage left off, with soaring, epic vocals and lightning fast
guitar solos. Led by the single and incredible video, Heroes Of Our
Time, the album will continue to spread the name DragonForce from
message boards to schoolyards and beyond.
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