Gamma Ray - Master of Confusion

So, did anyone pick up this EP yet?

I'm loving the new songs!

Yea I got it. Empires of the Undead is great but the Master Of Confusion song is kind of stupid, at least as far as the lyrics go. The 2 cover songs are pretty good and the live stuff was pointless since it was already on the live album. I don't get that part.

I like it but then again I like anything Gamma Ray!

Metalwargod

Empires of the Undead gives me hope for their next full length!

i still need to get this but it will be on my next amazon order.

me too, very heavy very power very LA.
mix of everything i like it.

I never got this. I was expecting a new album by now. Now I'm kind of regretting not buying it. I could have enjoyed having Master of Confusion for all this time and letting it sink in.

Is it still worth it to get it? I'm not super obsessed by collecting everything the Rays release, and I'm guessing the new album is not that far away, even less so now that it's been four months. Though I still haven't heard anything official.

Listened to the new songs, one very good and one average but i'm hopeful the new album will be very good.

If you don't need to own everything by them, then I'm not sure this is essential. Still a cool EP though.

It's on my ever growing want list.

I love me some Gamma Ray but I am now several releases behind on them... the last one of theirs I bought was Majestic, which was what? Six years ago? Seven? ... I will never get caught up!!

Fat Freddy wrote:

I love me some Gamma Ray but I am now several releases behind on them... the last one of theirs I bought was Majestic, which was what?  Six years ago? Seven? ... I will never get caught up!!

you have not missed much to be honest.

I'm not huge into GR, but I did listen to this a bit when it first came out, on Spotify. I really liked the first track quite a bit.

Powery metal, current or traditional, is just so not my thing any more, on most days. However, when I get in the mood, a good power metal tune is all I want to hear. And the first track here fits that bill for sure.

Everyone bagged on To the Metal but I like it. Maybe I had low expectations.

exact33 wrote:

Fat Freddy wrote:

I love me some Gamma Ray but I am now several releases behind on them... the last one of theirs I bought was Majestic, which was what?  Six years ago? Seven? ... I will never get caught up!!

you have not missed much to be honest.

I agree.  IMO, Majestic was their last really good one.  Land of the Free II was pretty good, but To the Metal?  Not so much.

Just read this on the Gamma Ray Wikipedia page:  Kai Hansen revealed, in an interview with Metal Blast in April 2013 that their upcoming album, Empire of the Undead, to be released in 2014, would have a "more thrashy" sound. In the same interview, Dirk Schlächter announced that the band would do a headlining tour following its release, in March or April 2014.

Kinda excited about this one....

exact33 wrote:

Fat Freddy wrote:

I love me some Gamma Ray but I am now several releases behind on them... the last one of theirs I bought was Majestic, which was what?  Six years ago? Seven? ... I will never get caught up!!

you have not missed much to be honest.

Disagree. Land of the Free II is an awesome record. Some of their most memorable material. "To The Metal" is lacking though, and it's short.

Majestic was a great one too. Nice sound, enough variety and a cool vibe all throughout.

Never got in to these guys - but I am a Helloween fan and have read up on them at No Life Till Metal and Wikepedia. They sound like they would be right up my alley. Gonna check some of their songs off of Youtube.

Land of the Free to start and I really like insanity and genius with Scheepers on vox.

Not Scheepers. Go straight for Kai. Land of the Free, Somewhere Out in Space, Power Plant, Majestic, Land of the Free II are all 10/10 albums. Heavy metal classics.

No World Order isn't far from it either. Just an incredibly powerful and consistent band. But I think the best record to start with, and the one every metal fan should own, is Land of the Free. The first with Kai singing, and it has a lot of their best and most beloved songs in it. That was when they stepped it up a notch.

Thelemech wrote:

Never got in to these guys - but I am a Helloween fan

 


Blast From The Past
Land Of The Free
Powerplant
Somewhere Out In Space
Majestic

I love Scheepers voice but all those are great.

If you check out the 'Lust for Live' stuff which was recorded on their tour with Rage, Conception, and Helicon, you can hear the Scheepers stuff come out FAR better than on the records, he sounds better, the band sounds killer..... so it definitely wasn't all his fault..the mix on his voice is weird on those three records, and sometimes the band suffers from Judas Priest syndrome.... playing the studio tracks way slower than they're meant to be heard.  

Thanks for all the recommendations guys! Much appreciated  
Just Listening to Lust For Life from the Blast From The Past compilation.  
It is great. Going to look for Land Of The Free (the album) next!

Land Of The Free sounds like classic Helloween! Gamma Ray are quite great I would say!
My local CD shop has about 3 to 5 Gamma Ray albums - one I know is Land Of The Free - I will be picking that one up tomorrow!

That's a cool store if they have that many Gamma Ray albums. I'm lucky if the store around here has one by them.