Review by Felix on July 9, 2019.

Nice joke! 

Imagine a band that copies "Show No Mercy" with every single note, although it plays own compositions. You say this is insane? You are absolutely right. This is Insane! These maniacs from Italy are the greatest fans of Slayer's debut the world has ever seen. The opening drum beat is taken from the beginning of the title track of "Show No Mercy", the sound of Wait and Pray is geared to the classic from 1983 and the last track of the first half has a double name ("Die in Hell / Metal Torment") that reminds us of "Metalstorm / Face the Slayer" from... well, how many times do I have to write the words "Show No Mercy" in this somewhat strange review? And don't forget to compare the letters of Insane's logo with those of Slayer.

The real joke of this joke is that the Italians wanted to be taken seriously. There is no ironic twinkle in the eye of the artists. The album just reproduces the classics of Slayer in another form, but at least two things are laudable and exciting. On the one hand, Insane have written autonomous songs, albeit each and every riff, each and every lead and each and every note builds a very stable bridge to their role models. It's not easy to praise your idols while offering own compositions simultaneously, if I am not mistaken. On the other hand, the eight tracks of Wait and Pray are almost on a par with "Evil Has no Boundaries", "The Antichrist" and so on. The album was released in 2005 (Slayer's latest album was the terrible "God Hates Us All" at that time) and maybe the Italian trio was on a mission in order to remind their Gods that energy, straightness and purity were those values that Araya and his friends had long forgotten. Either way, the material sounds fresh, stimulating and contagious. Vitalizing highlights like "Four Magicians" or "Evil Is at Hand" have anything it needs to enthuse old school thrashers, because they offer fantastic riffs, a good drive and this quantum of fanaticism it needs to be an authentic thrash formation.

Needless to say that the lead singer is totally familiar with Araya's emphasis and phrasing. The wording also lies in close proximity to Slayer's big bang. The first line of the opener ("Serving the hell we obey to the end") is as programmatic as "Blasting our way through the boundaries of hell" and the artwork is ornamented with the buddy of Slayer's crude warrior who looked so ultra-mega-evil on the artwork of the mother of all blackened thrash metal albums. But I want to say it again: Insane also offered very strong own ideas, because there are no obvious parallels between their song "x" and the song "y" of Slayer. They just have picked up the vibes and the structure of the very early Hanneman / King material, and so they present new riffs and melodies that just see no sense in hiding their inspiration. Maybe the dudes are painfully consistent, but they do not lack musical skills, compositional talent and veritable integrity. All songs hit the bull's eye and despite the non-innovative verse-chorus-verse-scheme, they avoid lame designs. Inter alia the dynamic of the effective solos gives the tracks a powerful touch. Not to mention the fact that the average velocity of the compositions is more or less breathtaking. If you like to have reasons to like yourself, buy "Show No Mercy Part II", also known as Wait and Pray. Too bad that the dudes never released a further full-length.

Nice joke!

Rating: 8.9 out of 10

Review by Alex on March 22, 2020.

Released in 2019 digitally but found the affection of physical media through Narcoleptica Productions, Oblivion is the first true push from Fallen Reign to cement itself among some of the best releases in the genre of yesteryear and on-wards. Man, can this American trio write a tune! 8 songs proficiently put together featuring powerful vocals, tantalizing guitar leads and solos, compatible drumming and catchy hooks. From the very moment of 'The Difference' one could tell of the amount of effort put into making Oblivion a piece the band and supporters would be very proud of. And for a group just starting out, it's a reassuring thing to know they got off to a good beginning.

If you like the rocking sounds of the mid 80s, lots of organs and keyboards, well above average clean vocals and super-good riffs on every jam, then Oblivion welcomes you the searching prog/heavy power metal listener to a paradise, a utopia of serene musicianship. Fallen Reign is just one example of many underground metal acts with true potential to rise and carry on the tradition. And as a listener, when discovering something this sort, this good and competent it gives one a sense of elation.

Oblivion is an album you'd find hard in selecting a favorite or best track given all the songs possess some sort of magnetizing hook to attract and win-over any listener. The songwriting is near impeccable for such a new band; there's a sense of uninterrupted movement, an advancement with every moment every note delivered. Whether it be the soaring vocals and synth combination (that work with each other like bread and nut butter), the diverse and invigorating drumming or the riffs offering celebratory praises to the material ensuring that once you hit the road with Fallen Reign, there's no returning to where you once were.

Absolutely wowed at the level of songwriting on display here; it's remarkable the way Fallen Reign were able to make all elements work harmoniously on Oblivion. 'The Difference', 'It's Forever' and 'Fallen Reign' make it clear the conquering unit can play; then you get to songs like 'Kingdom of Fools', 'Miracle' and 'Oblivion' and you're stunned by the sheer brilliance of their compositions that leave a lasting mark in your consciousness through the sublime incorporation, flow and emotional fluorescence brought to the table.

Some songs are uplifting and powerful like album opener 'The Difference' but then a slight melancholic tone creeps in on 'I Know' adding a pessimistic all the while optimistic outlook. The vocals take advantage of the instrumentals while successfully managing to embody and project the tonality of the tunes. With those mechanics at work without error, the guitars and drums are given ample room to fill and add little interesting tweaks to the material such as on the final track 'Oblivion' that showcases a playfulness with double bass, riffing technicality with the insertion of middle eastern sitars and tribal drumming upping the journey-esque character of the music.

I admire the fact that the vocalist does not try to push his vocal registers too high at ascending moments, rather keeping it at a moderate pitch to synchronize with the melody of the songs. Rather than break it, thus said, none of the members try anything unnecessary keeping the music in check at all times. All this is made possible on a conducive production supporting the ambitions of Fallen Reign on Oblivion. Its clean, resonating and appears to be a thing of affection in connection with the music.

Rating: 8.7 out of 10