The keyboard-infused yet driving power anthem “ Master Of Hell” bringing in a masterful performance by noted Bruce Dickinson doppelganger and internet sensation Raphael Mendes, who also can’t help but also bring an unsubtle “ What if Bruce sang for Stratovarius” scenario to the equally strong “ Beauty And War”.
Generally speaking, the further into things this album goes, the more intriguing the vocal performances accompanying Tolkki’s dense arrangements and six-string wizardry, with those elements themselves adapting accordingly.
But from here on in the picture gets a bit more stylistically nuanced, as more symphonic-tinged offerings set to a slower pace such as the 80s rock infused banger “ I Just Collapse” and the beautifully symphonic-tinged power ballad “ Memories” (that little harp part during the intro and outro segments is just haunting) feature stellar showings by Chaos Magic singer Caterina Nix and Unleash The Archers’ own Brittney Slayes, rivaled fairly closely by the more standard pop-like balladry with a Within Temptation-like twist turned in by Phantom Elite vocalist Marina La Torraca.] Things begin in standard fashion with a driving speed-infused powerhouse with the title anthem “ Enigma Birth”, featuring frequent power metal cover artist and ex- Damnation Angels front man PelleK, who turns in a high flying performance that comes the closest to channeling Timo Koltipelto of anything heard on here. While the stylistic nature of this album should be familiar to anyone even mildly familiar with power metal, the assembly of vocalists tapped to bring these songs to the finish line includes a few surprises. To that end, this is probably the closest thing to a late 90s power metal offering to come out of the Frontiers catalog. On the other hand, Tolkki’s continual adherence to the speed metal roots of his signature style gives this particular album far more of an old school metallic character, often paralleling the triumphant fury of material heard back in “ Episode” and “ Visions” when the tempo is kicked up. Perhaps the chief different separating these two virtuoso guitarists and symphonic arrangers is that Timo’s approach is a bit more nostalgic and gradual in its approach, while Magnus’ massive sounding sampled orchestrations have more of a modern bombast to them that is highly impressive but perhaps a bit less dynamic from one song to the next. It almost goes without saying that the partnership that Timo currently shares with Frontiers Records was fated to occur when looking at how similar his trajectory as a creator has been to that of Magnus Karlsson. Though even this project has been subject to a certain level of ebb and flow in quality of output since its 2012 inception, things have been going quite well since the release of 2019’s “ Return To Eden,” drawing more directly from the heyday of Timo’s former glory just prior to the 2000s with Stratovarius, and the follow up to said success dubbed “ The Enigma Birth,” the fourth LP under the Avalon name continues this formula to masterful results.
Following his exodus from the band that was his vehicle for helping to usher in the second wave of power metal, ex- Stratovarius guitarist Timo Tolkki has made this the guiding philosophy of his subsequent ventures, his latest one in Timo Tolkki’s Avalon being arguably the most consistent and successful of the bunch. There is definitely strength in numbers as if the ongoing success of Tobias Sammet’s Avantasia and the wide array of super groups flowing out of the floodgates of Frontiers Records was not enough of an indication of that.