CONQUEST – Paradox (2024) *HQ*
CONQUEST out of St. Louis, MO have been slugging it out in the Metal world since the very late 80s and early 90s. You can think them for keeping true U.S. Meta alive, even if it’s been more underground. They’ve had a mix of styles but mostly just straight up classic Heavy Metal – influences ranging from Judas Priest to Metallica.
Derrick Brumley has covered the vocals throughout the band’s history so their overall “sound” from the vocals has remained consistent. I don’t own every release of their library but I’m fairly familiar with their work and have always been impressed.
Let’s face it, they started in a time when Classic Metal was fading out in the early 90s. As the scene grew in Europe and other parts of the world, it remained difficult for bands like this to succeed in the United States. Long-story short, CONQUEST has never really gotten the exposure and attention they deserve.
Their new album “Paradox” is a great place to start if you’re just getting into the band. You could argue it’s their pinnacle moment, it’s 16 epic tracks of trad Metal that show you the band has many different sides to them. While most of the album contains massive anthems, they surprise you with songs like “In The Heavens”, “Babylon America” and “Last Goodbye” that show a more melodic side of the band.
”Walking Dead” and “The Writing’s On The Wall” are the first two singles that are good representations of the album. Both lean into real Metal with some modern twists. They’ve got influences from the NWOBHM, but they have a little of the Pantera groove Metal in their sound plus some Testament as well.
A couple of my personal favs are “Dying To Live” and “Killing Time”, which are also a couple of their heaviest. I think this is when they’re at their best when they to the slightly uptempo stuff, gang vocals, blistering solos and big choruses.
You WILL however hear them branch out from their roots on several songs. As bonus track CONQUEST does their version of Rainbow’s classic ‘Man On The Silver Mountain’, more metallic and thrashy than the original.
While there are many songs that stand alone on their own very well, the entire album has an overall “theme” and “concept” that makes the CD worth listening from beginning to end. This is essentially their “Destoyer” or “Operation Mindcrime”. I also think of Lizzy Borden’s “Master Of Disguise”, not so much musically, but more in the overall feel and story-telling.
Fans of Classic Metal need to listen to this album. It’s really well written and arranged with strong performances. I personally like that the production is raw and straight, like in good U.S. Metal glory days, with biting guitars.
Highly Recommended
01 – Of The Devil’s Creed
02 – Walking Dead
03 – Save Me
04 – He Shall Return
05 – Celtic Mist
06 – Love Amplified
07 – Valley Of The Damned
08 – Dying To Live
09 – World Of Hate
10 – The Writing’s On The Wall
11 – King Of The World
12 – In The Heavens
13 – Babylon America
14 – The Killing Time
15 – Last Goodbye
16 – Man On The Silver Mountain
Derrick Brumley – lead vocals, guitar
Mike Crook – guitar and vocals
Rob Boyer – bass and vocals
Lee Skyles – drums and vocals
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