Maximum Metal Rating Legend
5 Excellent - Masterpiece. A classic.
4.5-4 Great - Almost perfect records but there's probably a lacking.
3.5 Good - Most of the record is good, but there may be some filler.
3 Average - Some good songs, some bad ones at about a half/half ratio.
2.5-2 Fair - Worth a listen, but best obtained by collectors.
1.5-1 Bad - Major problems with music, lyrics, production, etc.
0 Terrible - Waste of your life and time.

Note: Reviews are graded from 0-5, anything higher or not showing is from our old style. Scores, however, do not reveal the important features. The written review that accompanies the ratings is the best source of information regarding the music on our site. Reviewing is opinionated, not a qualitative science, so scores are personal to the reviewer and could reflect anything from being technically brilliant to gloriously cheesy fun.

Demos and independent releases get some slack since the bands are often spent broke supporting themselves and trying to improve. Major releases usually have big financial backing, so they may be judged by a heavier hand. All scores can be eventually adjusted up or down by comparison of subsequent releases by the same band. We attempt to keep biases out of reviews and be advocates of the consumer without the undo influence of any band, label, management, promoter, etc.

The best way to determine how much you may like certain music is to listen to it yourself.
Band
Stonegard
Title
Arrows
Type
LP/EP
Company
Candlelight
YOR
2006
Style
Hard Rock
6/20/2007 - Review by: Etiam
Stonegard - Arrows - 2006 - Candlelight Records

Track Listing
1. Ghost Circles
2. Arrows
3. Hunter
4. At Arms Length
5. Resistance
6. The White Shaded Lie
7. Triggerfinger
8. Barricades
9. Goldbar
10. Darkest Hour
In the wake of America’s tidal wave of attitude-driven hard rock bands that crashed ashore in the early 00’s (Breaking Benjamin, Nickelback, Puddle of Mudd, et al), it was inevitable that more aggressive, quasi-metal spin-offs would find their way to the surface as well. Some are successful, Priestess being a recent example, others fail (or should have, such as Chevelle), and still others are like Stonegard—lodged between both camps but lacking a foundational handhold in either.

Stonegard are a Norwegian group, a double-edged sword in this instance, as they are immediately putting them into exalted metal company but also a local hard rock market significantly less developed. Perhaps this community is what has inspired Stonegard to blend some metal into their hard rock, which does produce some moments of earnest success. However, it becomes clear soon enough that Stonegard considers themselves a metal band, not a rock band, and this is where the issues arise. While certainly heavier than the average rock band of today (e.g. louder drums, darker guitar tuning, some ‘screams’), Stonegard are undeniably the black (or white, as it were) sheep any metal bill, and their attempts at serious heavy metal feel like affectations more often than not, in the end.

If Stonegard were fresh-faced 20 year olds from the ‘Deep South’, they would be a perfect investment for an American mid-level label looking to generate some street cred. With ‘Arrows’s aggressive production, riffing that balances catchy melodies and heavy metal hooks, and impassioned vocals full of backwoods charm and twang, Stonegard clearly have a wide array of talents to utilize and are certainly more dynamic than many of their peers.

Yet, the moments where Stonegard try to sound the most metal are the ones where they stumble the most; it is instead songs like ‘At Arms Length’ or the well-crafted vocal harmonies of ‘Darkest Hour’ that are their most earnest and thoughtful. The awkward attempt at blasting on the title track, for example, is disorienting rather than inspiring, and the breakdowns in opener ‘Barricades’ will alienate more than they attract. Ultimately, ‘Arrows’ simply isn’t appropriate for a metal market. No matter how Norwegian or how long-haired and wifebeater-and-wristband clad this quartet is, few metal fans will be duped by the vanilla ‘Arrows’.



--Etiam 05.10.07

  • 1 :REVIEW COUNT
    1.5 :AVE RATING

ALL REVIEWS FOR: STONEGARD
TITLE
DOR
COMPANY
REVIEWER DATE MADE RATING
Arrows
2006
Candlelight
Etiam6/20/2007
1.5

ALL INTERVIEWS FOR: STONEGARD
INTERVIEW INTERVIEWER DATE TAGLINE


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