Danava
At Midnight You Die
(Teepee Records)

Danava is a name that you do not know and should immediately make every attempt (which isn’t hard in the internet age) to acquaint yourself with. Spitfire guitar solos and mind melting melodies are just two possible ways to describe the monster that is Danava.

Despite being around for a little over a decade they can be described as flawed perfectionists. With only three LP’s ( and a handful of singles) released since the inception of the band they have managed to put out nothing but the best with each release building on the strengths of the last.

Their newest offering is no exception. A bombastic war cry echoing the giants of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest with the influence of Italian B (closely verging on C)  movie sensibilities, At Midnight You Die is pure molten metal excellence. The flawlessly tight unit blazes through chugging rhythms and guitar harmonies at lightning speed, all the while brain child Greg Meleney wails over as he picks up half of the guitar slack with ease. The B-side is a cover of “My Spirit Runs Free” yet again an homage to films of yore, and it’s the furthest thing from a bore. While most of Danava’s outing is bombastic they take things down a few decibels and pull off a convincing folk tinged theme song that sounds right at home oddly enough with the rest of their discography. Here’s hoping the next record is a diverse one though whichever way it goes it will be guaranteed to be a step above a capolavoro.