Personally, I think Insatia have better in them, although for now 'Phoenix Aflame' is certainly a good place to start.

Hailing from across the pond, Insatia now release their second album, some four years after their first, with vocalist Zoë Federoff the only real constant in the line-up. Nonetheless, perseverance has paid off and album number two has finally arrived to much love from the online Symphonic/Gothic/Power Rock community.

It starts off with a bombastic minute and a half intro, it's all very dramatic and truly sets the tone quite well as Federoff welcomes us back to the land of the living. After that, I expected something a bit more grandiose than what Insatia actually delivered. This isn't a Nightwish-esque opus, but more a straightforward Female-Fronted Power Metal album with pretensions of depth.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with Insatia's music, and Federoff has a good voice for the style, but it can lack a bit of the "oomph" that other bands have. There's some very neat guitar throughout with serious riffage abound, but I was disappointed not to find a few tracks that made me sit up and punch the air.

This album has received plenty of praise online, and I'm sure there is plenty for genre fans to enjoy as it's well crafted, produced and performed. Personally, I think Insatia have better in them, although for now 'Phoenix Aflame' is certainly a good place to start.

Alan Holloway