Civilization One was started by vocalist Chity Somapala who has quite an impressive resume as a singer having sang for such bands as Firewind, Avalon, Faro, Court Jester, and still current singer for Red Circuit. Aldo Lonobile guitarist from the band Secret Sphere is also on this release along with some other veteran players as well. When I first heard about this project I was a bit skeptical as I always am with new collaborations. One listen to "Revolution Rising" and its apparent that together Chity and Aldo have created a perfect combination of melodic metal to delight your eardrums with! The production was handled by Markus Teske (Vanden Plas, Symphony X, Dominici), and Markus' experience behind the control knobs really shows! The guitars are heavy, the bass, and drums have a whopping crystal clear bottom end, and the vocals are perfectly balanced. "Revolution Rising" starts off with a very atmospheric intro called "Celestial Sunrise" that out of nowhere smacks you right in the face with "Life Of Agony" an uptempo, and ballsy riffage filled tune! The CD is well balanced as well featuring some really heavier songs all the way to a beautiful ballad. The vocals on this CD are all over the place, and by that I mean excellent as Chity can go from mellow, and soulful to downright heavy and aggressive! Favorites of mine are "Life Of Agony", "Welcome To Paradise", Time Will Tell", and the fantastic ballad "Dream On".

For a debut album Civilization One has come out of the gate full steam ahead, and letting the Metal world know that they mean business. I can't recommend this release enough. If you want a fantastic release thats verstile, and covers all the basics of Melodic Metal than "Revolution Rising" is a no brainer! Also highly recommended is the Japanese release! Why? Because found on the Japan release is one of the most beautiful, and emotional ballads you'll ever hear called "Out In The Rain". If you're familiar with Saigon Kick's "Love Is On The Way" and you adore that song, than this one will adore you as well. So again, do your ears a favor, and pump them full of Civilization One, and remember.......a revolution is rising!

Reviewed by The Metal Madman

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