A FRAGILE MIND

If your a ZERO HOUR fan you need to know that this one continues with their formula of complexity and heaviness. Man is it heavy ! A new vocalist is on board by the name of Fred Marshall and he doesn't disappoint, in fact he also had a hand in writing the lyrics for these songs.Travis Smith did the cover art as usual. Some of the bands they thank are POWER OF OMENS, EVERGREY, WATCHTOWER, SUN CAGED, SYMPHONY X, PAIN OF SALVATION, WOLVERINE, BLIND GUARDIAN and SILENT FORCE.

After a 6 second intro track they get into it with "There For Me". It starts of with synths that are quickly wiped out by a stampede of drums and bass. The bass is huge ! Vocals join in before some cool sounding guitar 2 1/2 minutes in that seem to swirl. An eerie calm after 3 minutes before the heaviness returns. "Destiny Is Sorrow" opens with more thunderous drums and bass as the guitar comes in and out. Vocals before a minute. Very heavy riffs 3 minutes in. I like the calm before 4 minutes with reserved vocals that lasts 2 minutes. Nice. A great sound 6 1/2 minutes in with vocals. An atmospheric calm again to end it. "Brain Surgery" is crushingly heavy with vocals. A change 2 minutes in as it settles down briefly then back to the thunder.

"Losing Control" isn't as heavy(it's still heavy) as the other songs but is rather atmospheric at times. Mike Guy puts on a drum clinic here.Complex guitar parts too "Twice The Pain" is a dark song with heavy outbursts. It builds with prominant bass before vocals come in. Great track. "Somnecrophobia" is a heavy duty instrumental with some excellent guitar. "A Fragile Mind" is the amazing 11 1/2 minute title track. A tasteful guitar intro with vocals after a minute. Bass and drums add some bottom end 3 1/2 minutes in. Very heavy before 5 minutes with deep spoken vocals. A great sound when it lightens briefly. It settles again before 8 minutes and I love the guitar that follows. "Intrinsic" is another instrumental. This one is a fantastic laid back number with some heavy bass. It even gets spacey 3 1/2 minutes in to the end. Incredible tune.

This album seems to get better as it plays out. While I may prefer "The Towers Of Avarice" and later albums, this one is well worth 4 stars.The second half of the album isn't as punishing as the first half and it makes for a nice contrast.