MAJESTIC VANGUARD – Beyond The Moon

Beyond The Moon is the debut album of Majestic Vanguard from Sweden. Fronted by the very skilled Peter Sigfridsson on vocals, the band delivers powerful and Melodic Metal. Their compositions might not be the most inventive in the genre, but the guys sure know how to produce tuneful vocal lines in dynamic and thundering musical surroundings.

However, the album is vocal and drum driven — a task both the aforementioned Sigfridsson and skinsman Eskilson indeed can meet. One might wonder, though, why the guitar and bass are arranged so notably close to the way Eskilson plays. Regularly, the guitar and bass become hardly distinguishable from the drums. A shame.

Still, several tracks are proud examples of quality Melodic Metal. “Emotions Of A Picture,” “Don’t Want To Be An Actor,” “Take Me Home,” and the closer “Mystic Eye” are all strong, and should treat a live set more than right. On the other hand, “Tears In Neverland,” especially its embarrassing chorus, is rather hard to digest. “Footprints,” with its synthetic-sounding backing vocals, will neither help the band to set the world on fire.

Anyway, what Majestic Vanguard’s music lacks in originality they catch up with through their lyrical themes. Beyond The Moon is all about Jesus Christ and Christian beliefs, a subject that definitely does not dominate the genre. The members of Majestic Vanguard certainly have embarked on a mission besides just playing in a band. Tired of all the demons and dragons in Metal? Fancy some songs about peace and salvation? Look no further than Beyond the Moon.

Peter Sigfridsson – Vocals
Samuel Fredén – Keyboard
Andreas Andersson – Bass
Johan Abelson – Guitar
Daniel Eskilsson – Drums & Production