EDWIN DARE: Unthinkable Deed           Label: Marmaduke

 Most of you see the name Edwin Dare and think:Uncompromisingly technical progressive metal from a talented
 supergroup featuring Jeff Kollman, Kevin Chown, Tom Kollman, and Bryce Barnes.  But with their first release, Unthinkable Deed, the band started off with a more hard rock style.  Though not limited to a particular type of the genre, the many tracks on the disc speak for themselves.  "The Killer" is very Extreme-like in the funk and chorus department, however hints of progressive riffing and perfect vocal harmonies keep the band from copying.  Taking a complete
turn, "Oh Darling" is a slow, oldies ballad-style song with metal guitar playing?!  On the heaviest track of the lot, "Take Your Stand" crunching guitars, heavy palm muting, and nice tempo variations work together to pump adreinaline.  The vocals also remind me a little of Painkiller-era Judas Priest.  Other cool tracks are the Firehouse-meets-Iron Maiden-meets progressive "Burning Feeling", the solo guitar-driven "Waiting For The Chance", and "Love Poisons The Mind", which is an angry, bitter track that is structurally impressive and has some nice bass lines from Mr. Chown. All together, Unthinkable Deed is a great mixture of different hard rock styles fused into a progressive mold.
 

-Chris Jamele