Testament Of Rock: The Best Of Astral Doors

EDITORIAL REVIEWS
Sweden, the early 21st Century: The (rather unjustly) maligned Power Metal wave had passed its creative peak and the Melodic Metal scene consisted mainly of less than stellar clones of HammerFall, Nocturnal Rites et al. Renewal was sorely needed and two bands from the county of Dalarna provided it. Their names: Sabaton and Astral Doors. The latter, formed in Borlänge in 2002, accomplished the all but accomplishable: delighting Power Metal fans and traditionalists alike. The intense riffing and exqui-site melodies of Astral Doors equalled the very finest in contemporary Power Metal. "Testament Of Rock" culls tracks from all five full length releases and various E.P.s and elsewhere and serves as an extraordinary introduc-tion to a band that's already an integral part of melodic metal history - and they've only just begun.