ETERNAL FLIGHT – Under The Sign Of Will

Another Melodic Power/Progressive Metal band has thrown its reputation and talents into the mix of things. This French quintet made up of members Gérard Fois (lead & backing vocals; acoustic guitar), Nicolas Jeanpierre (bass guitar; backing vocals), Christophe Offredi (lead & rhythm guitars), Sébastien Vibert (keyboards), Alexandre Stellini and Arnaud Gorbaty (drums & percussion) call themselves Eternal Flight. The band hails from Annecy, France near the Italy/Switzerland border and was formed in 2001 by its founder Gérard Fois, an ex-member from Dream Child who split in 2001 after 2 albums with the band.

After a 4-track demo CD (June 2002) and the band’s debut release entitled Positive Rage (August 2005), Eternal Flight has produced their 2nd studio album and masterpiece to date, entitled Under The Sign Of Will. It was produced, recorded, and mixed by Gérard Fois at Morphoenix Studios.

The ten tracks on this album have a play time of only 56:28, which is somewhat short compared to most Prog Metal releases these days. “Edge Of Fire” is a killer of an opener and one of the heaviest tracks. It has great-sounding vocals, amazing double-bass drumming and intense cymbal work, bottom-end that can be felt and not just heard, which is extremely rare on most albums today, guitar riffs that sound as if several axes were in unison at the same time, and keyboard wizardry that is utilized at just the right level to ensure a perfect mix in the final outcome.

“Ghost (With A Different Soul)” is the closer and longest track on the album. It rivals “Edge Of Fire.” The beginning of it has a mysterious and eerie quality, which adds another dimension to the song. Nicolas’s thumb-style bass playing makes his sound come alive on this track. Some of Gerard’s best vocals are heard here. One of the album’s highlights is how Sébastien’s playing at times tricks the listener into thinking it is a guitar lead instead of him on keys. In-between these two tracks are eight more great songs — all worth listening.

It’s hard to follow an opener like that and “Dark Society” was almost a letdown. It uses the piano beautifully to close around the 6-minute mark. “Friends” opens as a mellow, ballad-type acoustic tune that gets surprisingly heavier after about a minute and a half into the song. There is remarkable bass sound that’s hard to miss. “Miracle Man” begins with an interesting key sound generated early on in the song. The drumming and keyboard playing are highlights not to say that Christophe doesn’t have his moments. “The Curse” opens with intense double-bass drumming. This is the first track where Gérard’s voice hits some real high notes. “Forgotten Side” has an irresistible opening and great keyboard sound and beautiful harmonies on lead and background vocals. “Next Ones On The List” has almost too much going on at the same time throughout this very busy track.

There is an intense-sounding ménage of guitar/bass/drums/keys worth checking out. “Deaf, Dumb, Blind” opens with a drum barrage that will cure what ails you. This tune definitely focuses on drumming and delicate cymbal work; the guitar leads are more calculated and intricate; the thumb-styled bass playing is a great commodity that is priceless. There are quite a bit of Progressive movements and changes throughout this track. Only the title track remains. “Under The Sign Of Will” begins with a drum/bass combo that doesn’t seem to let up. This is followed by a warm-sounding guitar lead that has an incredible feel to it with an equally wonderful bass run that seems to parallel and follow it right along in synchronous fashion.