BURNING POINT – Burned Down The Enemy

Finland’s Burning Point has been around since 1999. After recording a promotional CD, the band managed to get a record deal with a well-known German-based Metal label where they released two albums: Salvation By Fire in 2001 and Feeding The Flames in 2003. In 2004, the band released a single in “To Hell And Back” on Poison Arrow Records in Finland and Sweden only. Legal problems developed, which ended up in fights with lawyers and the loss of their record deal, but the band nevertheless managed to get some live slots on some big festivals, such as Tuska Metal and Sweden Rock. In 2005, Burning Point recorded another promotional CD, which was brought to the attention of Metal Heaven in Germany, who offered the band their current record deal, which has now resulted in a new 2007 release entitled Burned Down The Enemy.

One thing is certain about Burning Point … hanging with the German labels might be the reason behind some of the wonderful German Metal characteristics spilling over into their music. The music on Burned Down The Enemy is best characterized as eleven tracks of great Classic Metal with touches of German Power Metal thrown in for good measure. The touches include dashes of powerful melody, clear production, duel buzzsaw guitars that are always at the forefront of the mix, and plenty of powerful, double-bass drumming.

Several tracks on this release move at a pace faster than mid-tempo, as tracks like the opener “Parasite” and “Hell Awaits” can almost be considered Speed Metal. Both are melodic during their fast pace, but each more or less obeys posted speed limits. Other qualities of the band and their songwriting start to surface on the second track, “Heart Of Gold,” with its catchy opening duel guitar melody and a non-intrusive keyboard line. If that weren’t enough, add in an “arena-sized” chorus and Accept-like riffing during the interlude, and the track is easily dubbed a winner.

“Dawn Of The Ancient War” starts out with another heavy, classic, galloping riff, reminiscent of some of Maiden’s heavier riffs, and subtle, but effective keyboards. Midway through, listeners are treated to “Deceiver,” with its opening riff coming close to sounding like a classic Priest riff. The track gallops along at a solid mid-tempo pace, features powerful drumming, and has harmonies fueled by the coupling of the rhythm guitars and keyboard. The remainder of the album is filled with the same characteristics … with some tracks having brushes with almost Epic, Progressive Metal sounds.

Bottom line, Burning Point has put together eleven tracks of quality Metal that fans of such bands like Fate, Cloudscape, and modern day Iron Maiden should enjoy. There are even classical infused moments here that fans of classic Malmsteen and Rainbow might enjoy. Even though some band names have been mentioned here, its evident after several listens that Burning Point eases the listener into a peculiar “comfort zone” where pieces of the music might sound familiar, but it’s hard to come up with definitive names of any predecessors. For most, this might be the first time you’ve heard of Burning Point, but if they continue to churn out quality Metal like this, then it won’t be the last!

Lineup

Pete Ahonen – Vocals, Guitars, Bass
Jussi Ontero – Keyboards
Pekka Kolivuori – Guitars
Jari Kaiponen – Drums
Jukka Jokikokko – Bass