After recording a 12-track setlist, a joint composition with Paul Jones (Robot Lords of Tokyo), Kelly Garni (Quiet Riot), Scotty Phillips (Waysted) and special guest Kelle Rhoads (Randy's brother), I can not conclude otherwise that mr. Findlay anchored his skills as being a producer, composer and - of course- a musician!

As being a foursome, 'No Sky Today' has been able to launch a high-quality and very convincing first appearance. This production is phenominal, due to amazingly well-balanced harmonies between the instruments, the overpowering sounds of percussion, covered with astonishing guitar- and keyboardarragements from the master himself! Also compliments to Paul who is responsible for all the great lyrics.

'No Sky Today' is a good album, packed with progressive metal that bursts from high quality musicianship. Again, production-wise the recording is solid. You can hear every instrument perfectly, without losing all details.
There is a lot here to like. Lots of changes in pace and variation of song delivery and lots of high energy hard rock. Wayne performs an amazing array of lead and rhythm configurations throughout the album. His big riffs and solos give me some good insights to his guitar style. Besides the music, the artwork is also pretty cool.

Onto the review:

The first track, the title song, opens up with a aggressive distortion guitar riff before drums comes in. The atmosphere of this song is dark. Paul has a powerful vocal style that fits very well with the music. Awesome drum beats. Nice backing vocals. At the end of the song, a strident guitar sound is tossed right in your face..!

The next song 'She's On Fire' is another great song. Scotty shines on this song with some excellent drumming. This track sounds extremely powerful and tight, topped by Paul's powerful vocals. It is a killer song...you really feel 'On Fire'.

'Final Hour' kicks off with another heavy, in your face guitar riff, and some solid drumming. This song has an amazing bassline, very strong rhythm guitar and a great guitar solo halfway.

The nearly 4-minute 'Heavy Is The Debt' is bursting with energy and smashes you in the face from the first to the last second. It has a really powerful and memorable chorus and some excellent axe work. Wayne's guitar solo at 2:15 is absolutely incredible, with some amazing tapping technique. One of my favorite songs.

The album goes from the strong rock song 'Another Goodbye' to the semi-powerballad 'Escape'. This song has a very strong melody line but in my opinion, Paul's vocals could be a bit better for the second part of the song, sounding a bit strained at times. The wah-wah solo in this song is mind-blowing. A very enjoyable song that can't be overlooked.

Then there's the speedy 'Break Up'. There's really not much to say about this song, it's basically just fast all the way through. The guitar solo blew me away. Love the way how this song leads into the instrumental acoustic guitar/ piano 'Intermezzo'. A jazz-based track with some nice military style snare drumming.

The more aggressive 'Real Life' is a kind of straight-ahead rocker. The song is heavy and rocks pretty hard with big crunching grooves in the back. Turn this one up loud.
The second to last track on the album, 'Into The Sun' is one of my favorite tracks. Another ballad, which is more catchy but not really stronger than 'Escape'. Another great guitar solo, and the presence of orchestration elements with some cool piano parts at the end of the song. Masterpiece!!

'Pieces' is the absolute highlight of the album. It starts with a distorted guitar riff accompanied by powerful drums. The song has kind of a dark sound to it. This sound comes mainly through a deep bass and rhythm guitar playing extremely aggressive and powerful throughout the whole song…oh man, this is so cool!!! absolutely brilliant!
'Pieces' also has a very strong melody line and a extremely catchy chorus that won't leave your head. Again the axework is outstanding. The last part of the lead at 3:15 to 3:30 gives me a deeply emotional feeling. I have no words for this, you have to listen it for yourself.

The album leads out with the impressive and breathtaking song 'Gear Grinder'. It's a very fast paced song that starts right off with the sound of a motorcycle.
Paul really shows off his amazing range and talent on this one. A hard-rockin' song and a great way to close the album.


All in all this album is sensational and can be hardly recommended to fans of any metal genre. Fervent drumming, powerful vocals, solid bass, the songs are well-written and punctuated by intense guitar solos.

To buy the CD and for more information, check out: www.reverbnation.com/noskytoday, www.cduniverse.com or www.cdbaby.com.

Februari 2011