Well, I suppose it's time for another very short and not very good album review.

Awoken Broken - Primal Rock Rebellion (2012)

Awoken Broken is the debut album by Primal Rock Rebellion, which is a collaboration between Iron Maiden's guitarist Adrian Smith and the now disbanded SikTh's vocalist Mikee Goodman, which in some ways is a rather strange collaboration as the two bands play very different music, but it works, and it works very well.

From the opening track, this album is refreshingly different and quite unique. Adrian Smith's guitar playing is instantly recognisable, however it stays away from sounding like Iron Maiden, with the same going for Goodman's vocals.

Both artists perform excellently here. Adrian Smith is one of my favourite guitarists and his talent shines through, as it always does, with his distinct songwriting, riffing and solos. Goodman's unique vocals were one of the things that set SikTh apart from other bands in their scene, and they are spot-on here as well. He uses four or five vocal techniques in each song and they all fit in nicely and flow well with the music, and give the album an eccentric feel, as they did in SikTh. This is further aided by Goodman's interesting lyrics and songwriting, and the variation through the album between fast and very heavy tracks and slower, more melodic ones.

The combination of the two talents produces a sound that is unique and different from the two original bands and makes for an excellent album that grows better with each listen. This is a great debut to a project that will hopefully bring forth more brilliant material in the future.