From all reports, Blaze has been working on material that he was hoping to have become a part of the follow up to Virtual XI when he was informed of the decision to move on without him. This material formed the basis of the beginnings of this album. It was always going to be an interesting direction as to what the material would sound like. Much of his two albums with Maiden had been ponderous and somewhat sluggish, while faster songs like "Futureal" seemed to suit Blaze's style better. As it turns out, the styles here are mixed in a similar way, and the similar themed songs build together in a conceptual way to add to the progression of the album.
The album kicks off with the excellent "Ghost on the Machine", a heavy crunching track that combines a great heavy riff and superb vocal. It's the first song that comes at you post-Maiden, and you can't help but be impressed by it. I know that I was when I first heard it, and I still love it now. A great chorus and built-in crowd participation piece late in the song makes it a beauty. "Evolution" follows up with a more progressive output and a slower heavier undertone throughout. This segues straight into title track "Silicon Messiah", which combines the quiet, the heavy and the anthemic chorus all within the mainframe of the song. These opening three songs all sit in a mid-range tempo that is a familiar theme within.
"Born As a Stranger" is a slightly faster tempo and bounding with more energy, combined with great solos and soaring vocals from Blaze. It acts as a real kickstart to the middle of the album. This is followed by "The Hunger" which falls back into the mid tempo heavier riffing, though mixed with clear guitar to allow Blaze to change the mood of the song where necessary. His vocals dominate this song, though for me probably in the best way. It just needs to be of a faster tempo for me to get the most out of it. Anyone who has heard his live albums will know what I mean, and how the songs all sound better because of it.
In this light, "The Brave" is probably the fastest track on the album, moving along with triplet riffing and matching drumming, and is a pleasure because of it. It gets the album moving again. "Identity" could have done with a faster tempo, but still comes across as a winner because of Blaze's vocals. "Reach For the Horizon" builds throughout from the moody to the meaningful, but is probably the one real disappointment on the album for me.
"The Launch" is the short sharp jab in the arse that is needed after "Reach For the Horizon", a speedy number laden with the flailing guitar riffs and punchy vocals that make it a mood lifter. It then seems to be at odds with the start of "Stare at the Sun", which falls back into the quiet almost acoustic to start the song. This builds nicely into the heart of the song to become a winner, but it just seems like a strange way to sandwich a song like "The Launch". Still, "Stare at the Sun" is a ripper song full of emotive vocals from Blaze, and ends the album on a positive note.
While it may be inevitable that people will compare this album with Maiden's Brave New World, and will look favourably to the name brand and their release, I think they're a lot closer than that. Whilst Maiden's album has some great songs on it, it also has two or three that are only average. Here we have a similar situation. Songs such as "Ghost in the Machine", "Silicon Messiah", "The Brave", "Identity" and "Stare at the Sun" are excellent tracks and are comparable to the Maiden album. And even though I will always rate a Maiden release more harshly than others albums because the expectation of greatness is always there, I really think Blaze and his band has done a wonderful job here, and he had set himself up on his own two feet with aplomb.
Rating: "Fortune favours the brave". 4/5
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