DragonForce are back with their sixth studio album, Maximum Overload, and the best way to sum it up is that it’s basically the same old stuff as their past releases, just wrapped up in a new package.
One of the most memorable tracks on the album is the powerful Three Hammers High, with a good strong vocal line in particular, but there’s a fair few similarities to that song and Cry Thunder from their previous release The Power Within – and the fact that arguably one of the better tracks of the album is practically a rehashed version of an older song says it all.
In a nutshell – there’s just nothing new on Maximum Overload, with long and drawn-out flamboyant guitar lines and big sing-along choruses we’re all familiar with already, and although it does have to be said that vocalist Marc Hudson has brought in a breath of fresh air to both this release and their previous one (which was his first with the band), that alone is not enough because although the intentions are there to move forwards, they’re unfortunately just spiralling in place
What they’re doing is innovative to an extent because there’s no other band in the industry that sounds like DragonForce, but if they’re just going to keep releasing albums that are no different to their predecessors, packed full of tracks that all sound similar to one another, then it all seems a bit pointless to me. The songs are certainly enjoyable and will no-doubt please certain circles of fans, but everything just feels like they’ve taken the lazy way out with this, rather than think a little harder and try something new.
5/10
