All praise to Midnight Messiah for keeping the Metal flame burning.

If you fancy a no frills, no nonsense band playing pure Heavy Metal then look no further than Midnight Messiah. Hailing from the UK, the band members have paid their Rock dues in the past and have now come together with 'Led Into Temptation'.

Lead singer Paul Taylor has a raucous voice with a tasty Vibrato to it and he provides some solid vocals to the backdrop of a guitar onslaught by Phil Denton and Dave Strange. Keeping the beat and drum-skin manufacturers happy is Darren Lee – this album is a full-on Rocker. Titles such as 'The Sinner Must Die' and 'The Darklands' give the listener a big clue that this is a hard-hitting album with a no ballads maxim. Having said that, the songs have melody and are structured well – this is not a noise-fest, instead a Hard Rocking offering moulded from a love of old-school NWOBHM. The official closing track (note there are also some bonus selections later), 'While Heaven Bleeds', is an epic and brooding track with an incessant guitar motif interspersed with some slower segments that all leads up to the big chorus.

Highlights, for me, are the very hummable title track, with its top notch opening and a searing and intricate solo from Denton, and the stomping 'Hellbound' which fits the vocal style of Taylor perfectly. All credit to Lee for his heavy use of the cowbell on the intro to 'The Merry Widow', and to the band for that matter with harmonies not only on the guitar lines but also with the vocals on the verses.

The guitars never let up and there is an overriding early Iron Maiden vibe to some of the songs plus an onslaught of wah-wah-powered soloing adding to the mix. The album has a crisp production and all instruments are clear and fill the sonic spectrum nicely. All praise to Midnight Messiah for keeping the Metal flame burning.

Rob McKenzie